My friend & fellow author/poet Tamara Woods recently asked me to share a guest post on her excellent, frequently updated blog for writing & writers, PenPaperPad.com.
We received a fantastic response to "5 Things I Learned about Dialogue on the Way to the Theatre," so I thought it might be even more helpful to our fellow writers to also share here on theodorewebb.com.
When Tamara asked me for an informative post for authors, I thought of one of the areas I had difficulty with myself, and am still learning much about: Dialogue.
What's helped me most with dialogue is linking up with the M.T. Pockets Theatre Company Playwrights Group, organized by the talented playwright Donald Fidler. (I LOVE all Don's plays; especially, "Boogieban.") This group of energetic playwrights continues to help me tremendously toward continually improving my writing of dialogue.
Here are five quick tips (based on what the playwrights group taught me) to immediately improve dialogue:
1) Keep it short. Ernest Hemingway famously wrote short, declarative sentences. The mark of a master writer is saying much with few words. The master makes his work easy to read. He keeps the story moving, quickly.
2) Imitate the way people talk. A basic writing exercise is to go to a public place and listen to conversation. Get a feel for how people speak. Mimic the way people talk, NOT copy word for word. Imitate while bringing your writing talents into the mix. Create new, dynamic fictional conversation in your book or play. Convey a heightened sense of life.
3) Up the ante. If Julie wants a glass of water from Richard, it’s not interesting if Richard simply hands her the water. What if Julie has to do something for Richard to get the water? What if Richard’s plans back fire? Julie smacks Richard over the head?
I show conflict in every encounter. Here’s dialogue from my new comedy. Richard accuses his roommate:
RICH: I know it was you!
CHRIS: Give me that.
[CHRIS grabs back the white "take out" box of sushi.]
CHRIS: Bat-scat crazy. This is the last time I bring you anything.
This is part of an ongoing escalation of conflict from the beginning which I continue to the end.
Conflict drives stories. If there were no conflict, there would be no story. Increase the stakes.
4) Every character MUST want something. What do your characters want? Do they want to be heard? Maybe what they want is more subtle. Do your characters want recognition, validation, love, friendship, money? But why does she want money? Infuse each piece of your dialogue with underlying desires.
Here’s another tidbit I wrote, dialogue between Richard and his girlfriend Sarah:
RICH: But you’re not listening. I didn’t “just send it to myself.” Someone sent it to me yesterday, Thursday, 24 hours ago.
SARAH: Stop yelling at me.
RICH [Sets down the bottle of ketchup.] I’m not yelling at you. I’m just trying to expl–
SARAH: I GOT IT. You’re NOT taking me to the dance! Fine!
Obviously Rich wants Sarah to believe him. Sarah wants Rich to pay attention to her. The dialogue is infused with what each character wants, with the associated feelings of frustration, confusion and anger, highlighting miscommunication for comedic effect.
5) Simplicity. Think of dialogue like how Michelangelo sculpted David from a block of marble, cutting excess to reveal the idea, the beauty within. Less is more.
After you finish the first draft, eliminate EVERY unnecessary word. Look for distracting, filler “non-information” words, phrases, etc., such as “how about” or “honestly.” Make your art as powerful, meaningful and unforgettable as possible.
Your dialogue is stronger if your character says, “You cut me Brad,” instead of, “Honestly Brad I don’t know why you said that.”
Get to the core, to the main feeling, idea or message. Shorten. Cut the extraneous. Every word should move the plot forward, revealing desires of the characters while showing conflict.
Dialogue has many more aspects, which I don’t have space to expound. I hope you’ll add your own ideas, thoughts, rules and methods on writing the best dialogue into the comments below.
I’d love to learn something new from a fellow author. Let’s keep the conversation going! Leave your comment now. Tell us what works for you.
And don't forget to SHARE this post!
We received a fantastic response to "5 Things I Learned about Dialogue on the Way to the Theatre," so I thought it might be even more helpful to our fellow writers to also share here on theodorewebb.com.
When Tamara asked me for an informative post for authors, I thought of one of the areas I had difficulty with myself, and am still learning much about: Dialogue.
What's helped me most with dialogue is linking up with the M.T. Pockets Theatre Company Playwrights Group, organized by the talented playwright Donald Fidler. (I LOVE all Don's plays; especially, "Boogieban.") This group of energetic playwrights continues to help me tremendously toward continually improving my writing of dialogue.
Here are five quick tips (based on what the playwrights group taught me) to immediately improve dialogue:
1) Keep it short. Ernest Hemingway famously wrote short, declarative sentences. The mark of a master writer is saying much with few words. The master makes his work easy to read. He keeps the story moving, quickly.
2) Imitate the way people talk. A basic writing exercise is to go to a public place and listen to conversation. Get a feel for how people speak. Mimic the way people talk, NOT copy word for word. Imitate while bringing your writing talents into the mix. Create new, dynamic fictional conversation in your book or play. Convey a heightened sense of life.
3) Up the ante. If Julie wants a glass of water from Richard, it’s not interesting if Richard simply hands her the water. What if Julie has to do something for Richard to get the water? What if Richard’s plans back fire? Julie smacks Richard over the head?
I show conflict in every encounter. Here’s dialogue from my new comedy. Richard accuses his roommate:
RICH: I know it was you!
CHRIS: Give me that.
[CHRIS grabs back the white "take out" box of sushi.]
CHRIS: Bat-scat crazy. This is the last time I bring you anything.
This is part of an ongoing escalation of conflict from the beginning which I continue to the end.
Conflict drives stories. If there were no conflict, there would be no story. Increase the stakes.
4) Every character MUST want something. What do your characters want? Do they want to be heard? Maybe what they want is more subtle. Do your characters want recognition, validation, love, friendship, money? But why does she want money? Infuse each piece of your dialogue with underlying desires.
Here’s another tidbit I wrote, dialogue between Richard and his girlfriend Sarah:
RICH: But you’re not listening. I didn’t “just send it to myself.” Someone sent it to me yesterday, Thursday, 24 hours ago.
SARAH: Stop yelling at me.
RICH [Sets down the bottle of ketchup.] I’m not yelling at you. I’m just trying to expl–
SARAH: I GOT IT. You’re NOT taking me to the dance! Fine!
Obviously Rich wants Sarah to believe him. Sarah wants Rich to pay attention to her. The dialogue is infused with what each character wants, with the associated feelings of frustration, confusion and anger, highlighting miscommunication for comedic effect.
5) Simplicity. Think of dialogue like how Michelangelo sculpted David from a block of marble, cutting excess to reveal the idea, the beauty within. Less is more.
After you finish the first draft, eliminate EVERY unnecessary word. Look for distracting, filler “non-information” words, phrases, etc., such as “how about” or “honestly.” Make your art as powerful, meaningful and unforgettable as possible.
Your dialogue is stronger if your character says, “You cut me Brad,” instead of, “Honestly Brad I don’t know why you said that.”
Get to the core, to the main feeling, idea or message. Shorten. Cut the extraneous. Every word should move the plot forward, revealing desires of the characters while showing conflict.
Dialogue has many more aspects, which I don’t have space to expound. I hope you’ll add your own ideas, thoughts, rules and methods on writing the best dialogue into the comments below.
I’d love to learn something new from a fellow author. Let’s keep the conversation going! Leave your comment now. Tell us what works for you.
And don't forget to SHARE this post!
Click pic to Read! Theodore Webb: Poet, novelist, short story author, playwright. Webb is the author of the Dystopian fiction short novels, "Lifeline,” “Crucible,” “Colossus” and “Inferno,” the first books in “The STARLING Series,"available for ALL DEVICES, smartphone, Kindle, PC, MAC, via Amazon.com. All 4 books are also available as 1 volume, "The STARLING Connection." Webb's short stories are online, including "Desperate Engine" (Amazon) & "Family Hour" (Smashwords).
