My Journey as an Author - 22

Hey, everybody. Today I want to give a few tips about writing dialogue.

Before we start, it's important to understand the purpose of speakers speaking. Dialogue is a powerful tool that brings characters to life and drives the narrative forward in storytelling. It is the view of characters from within the story, either their truth, or their lies. Aspiring authors often strive to create compelling and authentic dialogue that captivates readers, but it is easy to make mistakes out of stylistic necessity, or an attempt at realism. We will explore effective techniques to help write better dialogue and elevate a narrative through better storytelling skills.

Understand your Characters:

To write authentic dialogue, you must have a deep understanding of your characters. Develop their unique personalities, backgrounds, and motivations. Consider their speech patterns, vocabulary, and cultural influences. This understanding will inform the way they interact and speak with others.

An educated elder in public will talk very differently from a rambunctious sibling in the privacy of his own room. A character will not just talk one way, but differently in different places, or to different people. That evil manager will belittle you, but will seek favor from his boss. Switching between these active voices helps identify the character to the reader, as it shows how they react to the world, and what they value.

Listen to Real Conversations:

Pay attention to how people speak in real life. Listen to conversations in cafes, parks, or public spaces. Observe the nuances of speech, including pauses, interruptions, and non-verbal cues. This will help you capture the natural flow and rhythm of dialogue in your writing.

Now, it is important to understand written dialogue is not the same as real life speech. In writing, you must take a few shortcuts to keep things concise. Characters have to understand an issue without hours of additional instruction, argument, or boring facts.

At the same time, dialogue is not one monolithic block from each speaker. It can and should be broken up.

Example:

"I am really upset. This is the worst. You've done a terrible thing."

Correction:

"I am really upset," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. He spoke of loss, mistakes, the unnecessary evils of the world. "This is the worst. You've done a terrible thing."

Keep it Concise and Purposeful:

Dialogue should be concise and purposeful, driving the story forward. Avoid long-winded speeches or excessive exposition. Instead, focus on conveying essential information, advancing the plot, and revealing character traits through meaningful exchanges.

At the same time, if the pacing is too fast, readers can get fatigued, or even lose the plot. Finding the right pace can be difficult, and will require knowledge of your audience and their preferences. Cozy readers may like a slower pace, and young readers may need it if the plot is complex.

Show, Don't Tell:

Dialogue provides an opportunity to "show" rather than "tell" information. Instead of directly explaining a character's emotions or thoughts, use dialogue to reveal them indirectly. Let your characters express their feelings through their words, subtext, and actions.

An eloquent speaker may get upset and become silent, or babble when emotional. A gruff silent person may finally break down and ask for help. Someone hurt may just shout, "Get away from me!" This helps say a lot without writing it out explicitly.

Use Subtext and Subtle Clues:

Real-life conversations often contain subtext, where characters imply meanings beyond their literal words. Incorporate subtext into your dialogue by adding hidden agendas, underlying tensions, or unspoken desires. This adds depth and complexity to your characters' interactions.

Often, people are sarcastic. And sarcasm is hard to convey. But if you are finding it difficult for readers to understand your subtlety, you can always have characters respond and call them out. "Stop being so sarcastic." Or, if the comedic sidekick is being inappropriate in a solemn moment, "Is everything a joke to you?" This shows underlying tensions, makes clear what is being said, and can further develop characters and their relationships.

Give Each Character a Unique Voice:

Differentiate your characters through their dialogue. Consider their personality traits, background, education, and regional influences. Develop distinct speech patterns, vocabulary, and mannerisms for each character, ensuring that their voices are consistent throughout the story.

This is helpful and practical. If you have clearly identifiable speakers, you can drop out a lot of the he said/she said/George said dialogue tags. Your readers will know it was George, which means you can be more concise with your writing, or give room to more interesting description.

Pace and Timing:

Dialogue should reflect the natural ebb and flow of conversations. Vary the pace by incorporating pauses, interruptions, and quick exchanges. This mimics real-life dialogue and maintains reader engagement. Use dialogue to build tension, create suspense, or provide moments of humor or conflict.

Don't just think about this for each conversation, but for the entire story. Was there an action sequence, and your characters have finally made it to shelter, despite their future remaining uncertain? Now is a good time to add a conversation where they can address issues, unwind, have outbursts, and break up the progress of the story. It isn't great if you have multiple conversations back-to-back too often. Mix it up. But don't make it formulaic.

Use Dialogue Tags Sparingly:

Dialogue tags such as "he said" or "she replied" help identify the speaker but can become repetitive. They are the bane of writers. Instead, integrate action beats and descriptive cues to attribute dialogue. This adds movement and visual interest to the scene while still clarifying who is speaking.

Play around with it. This is going to be part of your style as a writer. But anything you can do to cut down on tags while keeping clear who is speaking will be a big benefit.

Edit and Polish:

After writing dialogue, revise and refine it. Read it aloud to ensure it sounds natural and flows smoothly. Eliminate unnecessary words or phrases that hinder the pace. Consider the overall context of the scene and how the dialogue contributes to the story's progression.

This is important, because dialogue is often where writers introduce logical errors. A speaker may say something they don't actually know. They were not there when the car crashed. They didn't see the dead body. You will have to have a clear understanding of your story to catch these errors, but it is easy to fix. Even a sentence where you say your characters spoke about what happened can demonstrate that details were conveyed without being explicitly stated.

Be Open to Feedback:

Share your dialogue with trusted beta readers or writing groups to receive feedback. Others may offer insights on areas that need improvement or identify inconsistencies. Embrace constructive criticism as an opportunity to refine your dialogue-writing skills.

This can be a very difficult process. For many, their writings is like a child. They don't want to hear anything bad, and even good ideas from outside sources can come off as aggressive. But this is a bad mindset which will hold you back. You don't always have to act on advice, but you need to be able to listen and accommodate good ideas when they come your way.

My Final Thoughts

Crafting compelling dialogue is an essential skill for aspiring authors. By understanding your characters, observing real conversations, and employing techniques such as subtext, unique voices, and purposeful dialogue, you can create engaging and authentic conversations that resonate with readers. With practice and continuous refinement, you'll master the art of writing dialogue and bring your characters to life in vibrant and captivating ways.