Striking Balances

"Broken Rocks" is up to 6200 words and feeling strong. Right now I'm trying to find the balance between action and character. Three paths are converging and the final confrontation is looming. While doing that I find I have time for dialogue and character interaction. This is interesting but makes for a scarcity of grievous injuries. My typical tactic is to do both character and action at the same time but this story seems to be building up, almost like a spy novel, with move and countermove as the plotlines drive inexorably toward their intersection. That intersection almost always has loud noises and associated broken bits, which is part of the delicious anticipation.