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Topic : Re: How do I write religious conflict? In this book I'm making, there is a religious conflict that happens. Here's the base of my plot so far: Adrian lives in the dragon tribe Sa'fwan. Foreigners - selfpublishingguru.com

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At heart this is a worldbuilding question. What shape the conflict takes depends on a number of setting and motivation related factors.
For instance, who are these foreigners? Are they explorers, looking for gold in a distant land, and are they the first people to make contact with this tribe? Exploration missions are expensive and dangerous. If a member of the group dies or piece of equipment is destroyed the explorers must continue their mission without them, so they have an incentive to avoid violence. They're more likely to flee and find gold somewhere else than fight.
Are they settlers? What made them come to these lands, and why can't or won't they go back to where they came from? Why do they want to save the tribesmen to begin with? If it's out of genuine compassion rather than a paternalistic drive to bring order to the universe, they might favor religious education over conversion at the tip of a sword. This will inform how the foreigners treat the tribe.
If war breaks out, what concrete, tangible reason drives it? "They believe in gods and we don't" is too abstract and unfocused. It may well be the defining difference between the two groups, but it's impersonal. The reason should ideally be an existential threat not only to the tribe but also the main character. Maybe the foreigners treat the tribesmen as second-class citizens? Maybe they demand a virgin to ritually disembowel on the altar to their gods?
These are a few questions you can and should ask yourself, but don't stop there. Get to know your characters and their cultures in fine detail before you put pen to paper and the conflict will write itself.


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