Dialogue Writing
Module 1
Format
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Situation/ Context provided
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Involves conversation between two or more people
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Mention names/profession of characters speaking
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Abbreviations can be used
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Punctuation, Grammar, Tense, Voice
Types of Questions
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Dialogue Writing based on a given situation
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Dialogue completion according to the context
Structure
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It needs to move the story forward and reveal important
character information without seeming artificial.
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Needs to seem realistic without actually being realistic.
Don’t try to be too realistic. Our actual speech wouldn’t make
great dialogue. We say “um” and “uh” a lot. We trail off in the
middle of sentences. We change subjects without warning.
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Good dialogue should approximate real speech, not mimic it.
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It should be concise, brief & impactful
Long, wordy passages of dialogue might seem like a good
way to get information across, but they can be tedious for
the reader.
It should communicate character information.
Good dialogues let the reader know something about the
person speaking it.
Give each character a unique voice/way of speaking.
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You don’t speak in the same way around every single
person.
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Your voice and style changes depending on who you’re
chatting with. For example, you’re going to talk differently
to your mom than you would to your best friend.
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While it’s important to be consistent with your character’s
style and voice, it’s also crucial to think about the who
when it comes to their dialogue and adjust accordingly.
• DO confirm that your character is speaking in a
consistent/appropriate voice. Your six-year-old character
shouldn’t use college level words unless they’re a prodigy. Your
gruff loner isn’t going to be chatty all of a sudden, unless
something world-shifting happened to him.
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DO make sure your characters have something unique about
them so it’s obvious when they are talking. Does one character
speak in gruff, one-word sentences? Is another character
sarcastic and never takes anything seriously? Or is the main
character always upbeat?
Show who your character is.
One of the best methods of character development is dialogue.
Think about it: how do we learn about new people when we meet
them? Through what they say.
You could meet someone entirely new and based on the
exchange, you actually learn a lot about who they are and how
they operate in life.
You discover if they’re shy, bold, blunt, or kind-hearted and soft
spoken.
Your dialogue should do the very same for your characters.
Cut the hellos and goodbyes
Greetings are absolutely necessary in real life.
Not so much when you are writing dialogues be it for a story or script.
An exchange like this will bore your readers to death:
“Hey, Charlie!”
“What’s up, dude?”
“Not much, how are you doing?”
“I’m fine, you know. Same old, same old.”
“Ah, I feel ya. Anything new in your world?”
“Not really, to tell you the truth.”
Cutting these will help speed up your pacing as well as keep the
dialogue to the must-speak information.
Using the person’s name repeatedly
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It’s tempting to make your characters call each other’s names
often. However, this isn’t how we talk in real life.
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Unless we’re trying to get their attention or are emphasizing
(or warning!) a point.
How not to write dialogue:
“Rebecca, I really needed you and you weren’t there.”
“I’m sorry, Ashley. I was just busy with school and work.”
“Okay, but that’s not a good excuse Rebecca.”
“Okay, but that’s not a good excuse Rebecca.”
“You’re right, Ashley. It’s not.”
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Show, don’t tell
Dialogue allows the reader to experience a scene as if they were there.
Instead of telling the reader your mom was angry, they can hear it for
themselves:
“Justin Michael,” mom bellowed, “Get in here this instant!”
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Dialogue can give your reader a great deal about character, emotion
and mood.
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DON’T tell the reader emotion in dialogue. “I’m sad/I’m angry/I’m
happy” does nothing. Make your readers feel the emotions your
characters are feeling. You can show them the emotion by having your
characters cry, clench their fist, grind their teeth, or smile. It’s the best if
your words can transform the reader into your character so they feel it.
• Keep your dialogue brief and impactful
• Sentences must convey complete sense and meaning in connection with each other
• Be mindful of the context of conversation
• Give each character a unique voice
• Be consistent with characters’ voices
• Be consistent with the tense
• Questions- complete the dialogues in the given context by choosing the most appropriate option
Complete the following dialogues:
Tom: Do you know David Lewis?
Adam: ______________________
Tom: He is very tall and he's got quite short, brown hair.
I recognize the name but I can't picture him.
a. What does he look like?
b. Where is he from?
c. How old is he?
d. Yes, he is my best friend.
WRITING STRATEGIES FOR EFFECTIVE DIALOGUE WRITING
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Writing effective, compelling dialogue has multiple elements. It’s not
only what characters say but how they say it that matters. Or how you
show who’s speaking. ‘He said’ and ‘she said’ can dull and grow boring
if overused.
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Volume (e.g. yelled, shouted, bellowed, screamed, whispered)
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Tone or pitch (e.g. shrieked, groaned, squeaked)
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Emotion (e.g. grumbled, snapped, sneered, begged)
COMPARE THE TWO DIALOGUES
“I told you already,” I said, glaring.
“Well I wasn’t listening, was I!” he said.
“Apparently not,” he replied.
Now compare this to the following:
I glared at him. “I told you already.”
“Well I wasn’t listening, was I!”
“Apparently not.”
WORDS SIGNIFYING
EMOTIONS
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Anger:Shouted, bellowed, yelled, snapped, cautioned,
rebuked.
Affection:Consoled, comforted, reassured, admired,
soothed.
Excitement:
Shouted, yelled, babbled, gushed, exclaimed.
Fear:
Whispered, stuttered, stammered, gasped, urged,
hissed, babbled, blurted.
Determination:
Declared, insisted, maintained, commanded.
Happiness:
Sighed, murmured, gushed, laughed.
Sadness:
Cried, mumbled, sobbed, sighed, lamented.
Conflict:
Jabbed, sneered, rebuked, hissed, scolded, demanded, threatened, insinuated,
spat, glowered.
Making up:
Apologised, relented, agreed, reassured, placated, assented.
Amusement
Teased, joked, laughed, chuckled, chortled, sniggered, tittered, guffawed, giggled,
roared.
Storytelling:
Related, recounted, continued, emphasized, remembered, recalled, resumed,
concluded.
Show emotion in dialogue through action and gesture
“That’s not what you said yesterday,” she said,
her voice implying she was retreating,
withdrawing.
COMPARE WITH
That’s not what you said yesterday.” She
hesitated, turned and walked to the window.
In the second example, the dialogue is interspersed
with setting. How the characters engage with the
setting (the woman turning to face the window, for
example) reveals their emotions mid-dialogue. The
movement and gesture conveys similar feelings to
the first dialogue example