Make Your Dialogue Speak Volumes
a. An often-misunderstood aspect of writing is what dialogue actually is
Tip 1: The importance of dialogue
Dialogue is often the most important part of a story because it directly engages the reader.
Good dialogue allows the story to unfold without the narrator having to spoon-feed the reader.
Tip 2: How do you write good dialogue?
The best writers of dialogue tend to be those that:
1. Read the most and
2. Those that listen the best
Writing good dialogue comes from reading other writers and learning what works and what doesn't.
Moreover, it's about listening to people talking and truly understanding what dialogue is all about.
Writing convincing dialogue is one aspect that new writers don't realise is so tough.
Tip 3: Good dialogue is not always realistic
If you've ever had to read a transcript of a meeting, you'll realise immediately what I mean here.
If you put in every mistake and correction; every 'um' or 'er' - then you'd end up with flat, unconvincing dialogue.
When we listen, we filter out
this 'background noise' and only hear the important stuff.
When we read, we take in every word and give it all equal importance.
When we write minutes of a meeting, we don't write what was actually said, we type what was meant.
It's broadly the same with dialogue. Unless you want your characters to appear confused, or nervous, you omit the words that might really be said and just write the ones that convey the meaning.
Similarly, when we listen, we filter out the bad grammar and focus on the real meaning. People often use double negatives, for example:
"Don't buy nothing."
This actually means that you
should buy something, but it wasn't the speaker's intent.
In writing, leave these colloquialisms out - unless you're proving a point.
Another common problem with speech is the desire to say 'yes' rather than 'no' if we want to convey a positive response.
"You don't mind if I sit there, do you?"
The honest answer most of the time is 'no.' That is, I don't mind.
But so many people say 'yes,' meaning it's OK to sit there - their desire not to say 'no' is so strong.
This may seem pedantic, but in real-life we have so many other ways to reinforcing the meaning or our words. In writing, the reader will be easily confused, so rewrite phrases like these so that there can be no confusion.
This makes most characters appear more confident, clever and wittier. That is a by-product of the process. If you want to make them seem less confident, clever or witty, you need to find and alternate means.
Tip 4: Dialogue is dramatic
Dialogue can impart information, but as often as not, its purpose is to provide some real drama.
Readers aren't interested in your character telling their friend what they did since getting up this morning if it's mundane. Readers want to be entertained.
Good dialogue may impart information, as already stated, but if not, its primary purpose is to provoke arguments, emotions or conflict between characters.
That's another aspect where real life and writing conflict.
In real life, a large proportion of dialogue is about sharing information (or sometimes just a noise to full the silence that most people abhor).
In writing, it's about a conversation that will provide some action.
Dialogue is typically more dramatic than simple narration and as writing is in the entertainment business, don't forget this simple fact.
Tip 5: Preamble
Good manners don't always make for good reading.
If every time your characters meet they spend a page or so exchanging pleasantries, your readers will soon get bored.
The best advice is to cut the preamble that usually comes before the speakers get down to the matter in hand. Sometimes realism has to give way to practicality.
b. One of the main reasons that writers fail to write good dialogue is that they don't know when to use dialogue
Tip 6: Dialogue is part of the puzzle
Dialogue alone is not the way a story is told. Nor is setting, nor is plot…
No one element of writing is necessarily more important than the other - until you are using it.
When you are describing a scene, setting is the most important thing. When you are writing dialogue, it becomes the most important thing. But overall, it is just one piece of the puzzle.
Some will argue it is the more important than many other aspects as the adage, 'show don't tell' is valid.
Dialogue is one way of showing without the narrator having to simply tell the story.
The truth is that all these aspects build on each other. Good dialogue will help to tell the story and is essential to break up passages of either description or narration.
Tip 7: So when do you use dialogue?
A common rule of thumb is not to use anything that isn't necessary - and that goes for dialogue as much as any other aspect of writing.
Broadly speaking, dialogue falls into a number of functions:
a. As a break
Dialogue should be used when you have too much description or narration and there is a strong likelihood that the reader will lose interest.
How much is too much? There is no specific answer - you'll just have to trust your instinct and any feedback you get.
b. As a development tool
If you want to show facets of the character without simply describing an action, dialogue is a good way.
Dialogue isn't a scene in isolation but it serves as a great way to reveal information about characters without having to show.
A character' speech, opinions or knowledge can convey so much about them that the reader knows instinctively about them.
It's not about stereotypes - but it is about showing in such a way that the reader can easily fill in the blanks.
c. As a link
It is a popular plot device to use dialogue to take the story to the next section.
The conversation closes one part of the story and prepares the reader for the next.
d. To impart information
The protagonist regularly reveals to another character the clues that have lead them to this point. These could be subtle clues that the reader only now understands, or activity that happened without the reader observing it.
Similarly, protagonists often give a recap to characters in order to ensure that the reader is up to date with a particularly tricky part of the plot.