DIALOGUE - Arlee's A to Z

Realistic dialogue:

• advances the story
• puts the character into characters
• Breaks straight exposition into interesting ripples and turns.

Nothing pulls the reader out of a story faster than dodgy dialogue.

DIALOGUE

LISTEN

Listen when others are talking, you will hear the lilt and flow of the conversation. Natural speech patterns vary between age groups. They also vary depending on the social hierarchy evident in the group.

MAKE CHATTER MATTER ;)

Chatter matters but too much conversation is boring to read – trust me on this: I have marked a million stories written by Primary School children - all dialogue must drive the story forward.

DUMPING – SPRINKLE IT OVER A WIDE AREA AND YOU MIGHT GET AWAY WITH IT

Back story should be blended and, although dialogue is one place to sprinkle necessary facts, great care must be taken to avoid dropping information by the tonnage ;)

ACCENT, DIALECT AND SLANG

Less. Is. More.

When you decide to let rip please remember the reader who is deciphering the code.

ACCENT (Watford) : ‘Cos, right, this ‘ard-faced tosser w-ot’s turned up is open to mockin’--an’-slatin’ -- if-n you let him take the lead. Giz accent a break an’ back off with the slang ‘cos I’m bored with readin’ it, already.

DIALECT: Aw've just mended th' foire wi' a cob, an’ there's some nice bacon-collops o' th' hob,   w' a quart o' ale-posset i' th' oon - so that’s dinner sorted, in the frozen North.

SLANG: Unless you’re fluent, and there is no chance of you muddling the informal with the profane –  banger, banging, bang on, bang-tidy and bang to rights –  avoiding slang is the plan.

READ WITH A PEN AND A NOTE BOOK

Pay attention when you're reading. Where did you slip out of the narrative? Where did the character excite, or lose you?

PUNCTUATE

Accurate punctuation in all dialogue is essential.

TAGS ARE SNAGS

Keeping the dialogue tags simple helps the writing flow – "he said/she said" is almost all the variety you need.

In their book, “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers,” Renne Browne and Dave King say:

“If you substitute the occasional speaker attribution with a beat, you can break the monotony of the ‘saids’ before it begins to call attention to itself.”

DULL:

“Hey, Lucas,” Rowland said. “Where are you going?”

“Nowhere special,” Lucas said.

“I haven’t got much more work to do,” Rowland said. “You could wait for me.”

“I was going to walk down to the river,” Lucas said. “I have to get back before dinner. I've got a meeting with Master Topping, in his office.”

“Right. You go on,” Rowland said. “When I finish, I’ll catch you up.”

DUSTED:

“Hey, Lucas,” Rowland said, putting down his pen and leaning back on his chair. “Where are you going?”

“Nowhere special.”

“I haven’t got much more work to do,” Rowland said. “You could wait for me.”

“I was going to walk down to the river,” Lucas said, scuffing one toe on the floor, turning his head towards the door. “I have to get back before dinner. Remember? Master Topping? In his office?”

“Right. You go on,” Rowland said. “When I finish, I’ll catch you up.” 

EMOTIONS -  A DIRECTORY OF Ds :

dazed, deceitful, defiant, dejected, delighted, depressed, despairing, determined, disconsolate, discontented, disgusted, disheartened, dismayed, distraught, distrustful, disturbed, docile, doleful, dutiful.

Effective dialogue is ...?