How to Write Great Dialogue in Your Story – 5 Tips With ExamplesWriting a book or screenplay? Bad dialogue can cause readers to abandon your story after just a few pages, while great dialogue can keep them hooked till the end. Check out these 5 tips to make sure your dialogue is the better kind. Want to write an awesome story? Download my FREE outlining guide. What is dialogue in a story?Dialogue is what the characters in a story say. It’s one of the four major types of content that appear on pages, along with description, internal monologue, and narration. Dialogue, which receives its own formatting, can be expressed in any sequence among any of the other page elements. Why is good dialogue important?Are you an author looking for a publishing deal? Employees at publishing companies are busy. They lack the time to fully read every submitted manuscript. They may just read the first five pages, then decide to continue or not. If you haven’t impressed them with those first five pages, your project is done (despite how great your ending is and all the other scenes they haven’t gotten to). Are you a screenwriter? Film producers are known to follow a similar process while going through script submissions. Do you plan to bypass a writing deal and self-publish? Consumers can read the opening pages of your book on Amazon before buying. If they’re not hooked, your sale is gone. Since dialogue often takes up the bulk of a page’s space, it is bound to play a significant factor in the perceived quality of your writing, even in just five pages. Quality dialogue is critical for getting your story “through the door.” Even if you can capture a reader’s attention in the opening pages, you still need to make sure you sustain their interest with quality dialogue through the rest of your story. Below are 5 tips to help you nail this crucial component of your story. If you want even more advice on dialogue, check out my online dialogue course. 5 tips for great dialogue#1 – Infuse your dialogue with conflict“Hi,” Nick says. “Hello,” Grace replies. “You look nice today.” “Thank you. You look nice too. Where do you want to eat lunch?” “I want to try that sushi place on Adams.” “I really want to try it too. Let’s go. I can drive.” “Sounds good.” Are you bored yet? This is an example of bad dialogue. It has no conflict. The two characters are having a pleasant conversation with no tension. Though people tend to enjoy conversations like that in real life, they disdain them in stories. People buy books and movies for drama. Your characters shouldn’t ask simple questions and get back simple answers. They should be at odds with each other. Even in a scene where two characters are friends, they shouldn’t be in full agreement on a topic. Give them different perspectives, even slightly, then show those perspectives clashing. #2 – Give characters unique voicesAs a reader gets deeper into your story, whenever a major character is speaking, the reader should theoretically be able to identify the character based on the content of their words. This becomes possible if you give your characters unique voices. Characters should be individualized via characterization traits. Those traits should be reflected in the things they choose to say. Does a nasty organized-crime enforcer speak the same way as a friendly guidance counselor? Make the distinction clear. Even characters who have many demographic traits in common shouldn’t sound exactly alike. Think about people in your own life whom you consider a similar demographic as you. You may not talk drastically different from each other, but some variety must exist. Maybe you say the word “Yes” often, while your best friend prefers “Yep.” Not a major difference, but it can add to characterization. #3 – Use slang and jargon effectivelyLike we just discussed, characters should have authentic, distinct voices. In real life, people often speak with characteristic slang and jargon. People in your story should too. These terms can help capture a character’s geographic roots, career, demeanor, and much more. However, your audience may not have previous knowledge of these specialized terms. And you don’t want to slow down your story by explaining what every instance means. Work in some of these terms, but in a way that doesn’t prohibit your audience from following your plot. Your reader should be able to understand the gist of a conversation even if they don’t know every word. Have you ever watched or read a police-procedural movie or book? What about a story that features scientists working in a lab? Did you hear various terms you didn’t quite understand? Maybe codes cops use over their radios? Or chemical compounds the scientists discuss? Were you still able to follow the plot? If so, the gist of the conversations were intact. Based on the reactions of other characters, who do understand the terms, you were able to tell if something bad was happening in the scene or something good, and you could tell whom was affected. That's what matters. Yet, in certain cases, knowing a bit about an obscure or technical topic is critical to understanding a story. If you're writing one like this, you need to get the information across to your audience. For example, if you’re telling a military story, and a certain cutting-edge weapon plays a major role in your ending, you should sufficiently explain how the technology works well before the ending. But be careful. If your story features too many topics that require explanation, your pacing can suffer. Keep these to a handful at most. #4 – Don’t force information into your dialogue“Hey Amanda,” Steve says. “Guess what? Yesterday I ran into our former classmate, Nathan, who you started dating in high school, then dated through college, then broke up with last year.” Feels off, right? Steve and Amanda both know she dated Nathan. Steve would have no need to tell her information he is aware she already knows. Instead, this would feel more natural: “Hey Amanda,” Steve says. “Guess what? Yesterday I ran into Nathan.” Why do writers often force unnatural information into dialogue? Though characters may be aware of a certain piece of information, sometimes the audience has yet to hear it. Contextual details the audience needs to fully understand a scene is known as exposition. You should only include it in dialogue if the words feel natural. FYI, avenues besides dialogue exist for conveying exposition, which I also cover in my Powerful Pages writing course. #5 – Leverage silenceYes, dialogue is about talking. However, don’t hesitate to use silence alongside it. People often go quiet when they are upset or have something to hide. These emotionally elevated states can make for great drama in a story. Use them. Which example is more interesting to you? Example A “I looked everywhere,” Leah says. “The nightstand. The glovebox of the car. Every drawer in my desk. I couldn’t find it.” “This can turn into a problem,” Jim says. Example B “I looked everywhere,” Leah says. “The nightstand. The glovebox of the car. Every drawer in my desk. I couldn’t find it.” Jim glances at her and steps to the window. He gazes at the falling snow. She puts her hand on his shoulder. “Honey, it’s going to be okay,” she says. He takes a deep breath and storms out of the den. I don’t know about you, but I think B is better, even though Jim doesn’t say a thing. His silence creates tension. Him leaving the room without talking is a stronger expression of “This can turn into a problem” than him actually saying “This can turn into a problem.” Want more writing tips?You might also like my posts on descriptive writing and writing POV.
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