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Some tips for writing better dialogues
Learning to write dialogue can be very difficult. For years I have struggled deeply with the dialogue in my stories. I thought writing conversations that felt real and true to the characters wasn't my strong suit. I let this belief dissuade me from striving to improve. I was wrong. Stories absolutely need dialogue and my stories suffered from these shortcomings.
In the end, I decided to change course. I started asking writer and screenwriter friends for advice on how to write dialogues, I read everything I found on the net on the subject, but above all I started studying all the novels I read. So I started rewriting the dialogue in my stories over and over again until I started seeing improvements.
The most important thing, however, was to understand the importance and power of dialogue within a story and how complex it is to be able to create quality dialogues. For this reason I decided to write this article, in which I will give you some tips to be able to write better dialogues, creating richer and more nuanced conversations.
Let's start with the most important question
What is a dialogue?
Dialogue is what characters in a story say. It's how characters express themselves verbally, usually in conversation with each other.
Basically something like this:
"What do you want for dinner?" Jack asked his friend John.
"I don't know, it's up to you," John replied.
What does a dialogue look like?
The dialogue usually appears in quotes, like in the example above. However, some writers get creative with their punctuation.
Some, for example, use an em dash to annotate a line of dialogue, like this:
- What do you want for dinner? Jack asked his friend John.
Other writers do not annotate the dialogue at all. For example, Nobel Prize-winning writer José Saramago treats his dialogue just like the rest of the narrative, like this:
Jack asked his friend John, what do you want for dinner, and John replied, I don't know, you decide.
If you decide to put your dialogue in quotation marks, note that punctuation, such as periods and question marks, should be enclosed in quotation marks.
If a character is quoting someone else, put the quote in single quotes, in double quotes, like so:
"When I asked Jane, her answer was, 'Not just sushi.'"
What is the difference between dialogue and exposition?
In fiction there are two kinds of storytelling: dialogue and exposition.
Dialogue refers to the things characters say in a story.
Exposition refers to descriptive storytelling sequences.
Unless you're writing a script for a film or stage play, it's best to maintain a balance between dialogue and exposition.
Try breaking up long passages of exposition with short dialogue – even a sentence or two can be refreshing. If, on the other hand, you have a very long section of dialogue, it is good to insert short sections of exposition to keep the reader grounded in the time and place of the narrative.
Rules to respect in writing a dialogue.
There are a number of rules to keep in mind if you want to use dialogue well in your writing.
The dialogue should reflect your character's background
To get the dialogue right, you need to understand how your characters speak. This is likely influenced by where they are from, their social class, education, and a host of other factors.
Speech and tone are always linked to what has happened and is happening to a character. William Shakespeare was exceptionally adept at encoding his characters' speech patterns with these social markers and at blending these idioms within a single play.
Try this. Choose three characters from your story and write a conversation about pizza being mankind's best food, without using dialogue tags. Would readers be able to tell which character speaks each line?
"Voice" is a term often applied to the verbal and non-verbal ways in which a character communicates based on their personality, experiences, beliefs, self-esteem, worldview, and cultural influences. The louder your characters' voices are, the more authentic their conversations will be.
Be true to the period
If you're setting your story in the past, your dialogue should accurately reflect the choice of words, idioms, and speech patterns of that time period. Words, like clothes, go in and out of fashion. Conversations should be specific to the moment you're writing without sounding stilted.
Every line of dialogue must have a purpose
Dialogue shouldn't exist just to give your characters something to say.
Rather, effective literary dialogues serve important purposes; they can express characters, advance the plot, build tension, reveal context, establish mood, and so on.
If you can remove one line of dialogue from your manuscript - or, even worse, an entire conversation - without impacting readers' understanding of your story, then there's a good chance your dialogue lacks purpose and meaning. its function in the development of the narrative.
Desire should motivate your characters to talk
When your characters talk, they should be trying to get something out of each other or playing a power play. When writing dialogue, ask yourself what your characters want to achieve. (This is a crucial aspect of character development). Ideally, you'll know your characters well enough to sense not only what they want, but also how they would express their wishes verbally.
Will they be blunt or subtly manipulative? Will they get angry or will they always keep their cool?
Don't keep it real
Writers are often encouraged to create realistic dialogue. But there is something too realistic in fiction.
Just think of all the confusion, the noise, that fills your day's conversations: the chatter, the stammers, the simple statements repeated three times before being heard.
In real life, speech has a lot of padding or "stuffing": words like umms and yeahs. But good dialogue in fiction must be both more incisive and selective.
It is stripped down to reveal what people want from each other, reveal character, and dramatize power struggles. One of the most common mistakes when writing dialogue is writing exactly what people say most of the time.
This will probably be boring, as it will be full of "ums" and "ahs" and "you know" and "likes" and so on. Rampant, repetitive and not very glittery. Pay close attention to punctuation in your dialogue, especially things like exclamation marks (which should be used sparingly).
Remember, the most "realistic" dialogue isn't one that mimics the language you hear every day; but it's one where your characters' voices ring true.
People don't always say what they think
People are complex creatures. There is often a large gap between what people say and what they think, between what they understand and what they refuse to listen to. We rarely say what we want to say the way we want to say it. on the contrary, we adapt to our surroundings, striving to fit or stand out, to go deep, to flatter or appease.
Therefore, it is no wonder that too direct dialogue can sound false. These gaps, however, which we can define as subtext, are valuable territory for the fiction writer. Pay attention to them and let them generate drama in the scenes you write.
Relationships play a key role in dialogue
Speaking of circumstances, every conversation is shaped by the context in which it takes place, especially when it comes to the relationships between your characters.
For example, how two lovers talk about the weather should differ from how the same conversation takes place between an estranged father and son, co-workers, or strangers on the street.
Use body language and expressions
People say as much with their expressions and body language as with their mouths. Posture, eye contact, mannerisms, and reactions should all play a prominent role in the conversations your characters hold.
Don't be afraid to get messy
Realistic conversations rarely take place in perfect, polite sentences. People are messy, after all, and so is our dialogue. So don't be afraid to let your characters speak in snippets and unfinished sentences. To avoid grammar and use slang.
Balance the characters
Creating dialogue between four or more characters can be tricky. Fortunately, it's rare that so many voices share equal weight in the conversation. When writing scenes like this, resist the urge to make sure each character talks as much as the next. Instead, let the power dynamics unfold naturally.
Work with the tension of the scene
In fiction, almost all dialogue exists to somehow create or resolve tension. After all, it's the tension that drives readers to turn the pages, eager to find out what happens next.
To make sure your story dialogue doesn't block your story, pay close attention to the threads of tension in each scene. How can you manipulate tension through dialogue in a way that engages readers?
You don't need to write down every detail
The dialogue need not take place word for word on the page. Alfred Hitchcock once said that "drama is life with all the boring parts cut out." Similarly, we could say that good dialogue is like real conversation without fluff.
Think about it: very few "classic" scenes start with characters saying, "Hey man! How are you doing? Wow, long time no see. Parking was a nightmare." These lines add nothing to the story and are said over and over again . Are you willing to repeat this prelude for every scene where the characters meet? Probably not, it may seem strange to you, but your readers don't want to read them every time either. They can infer these details alone, so you can move forward and get straight to the heart of the conversation.
Every word you write has the power to bore readers or slow down the pace of your story, so make sure you choose your (character) words wisely.
Avoid excessive exposure
Exposure is always a tough nut to crack when writing—finding a cohesive, timely, and digestible way to reveal important background information can be a real challenge. It might seem natural to insert some exposition into the dialogue to avoid blatant narrative ramblings, but it's far from a surefire solution to your problem.
This is mainly because speech-based explanations can quickly become unnatural. Characters may talk too long, with too much detail about things they may not really think about, remember, or comment on in the context of the story (think "I'm just going to the well, Mom - the well that my brother, your son, tragically fell into 5 years ago…” ). Just because it's a conversation doesn't mean information dumps can't happen.
Therefore, be careful when performing dialogue-based exposition. It's usually good to have at least one character who doesn't fully understand what's going on, so that you can offer explanations in a relatively natural way, rather than just explaining things for the sake of the readers. For example, in The Godfather , readers get their first look at the Corleones through Michael's introduction of his family to his girlfriend.
Use catchphrases or quirks sparingly
Giving a character a catchphrase or quirk — like Jay Gatsby's "old sport" or Dolores Umbridge's "hem hem" — can give them a distinctive, recognizable voice. But as with all character quirks , they work best when you don't go overboard with them.
First, you don't want your character to repeat this catchphrase too often or else readers may find it jarring. Remember what Elmore Leonard said about the writer intrusion? If you enter the quirk too much, it may become visible on the page.
Second, you also want to avoid giving too many characters their quirks. Gatsby's and Umbridge's voices stand out because no one else has anything as memorable about their speech. Furthermore, each quirk reveals something about the character: Gatsby personifies a gentleman in speech and lifestyle; Umbridge works to maintain her image of composure in contrast to the chaos of Hogwarts under Dumbledore's direction.
You must therefore think carefully about your character's voice and only use catchphrases and quirks when they really have something to say about your character.
Keep three lines of dialogue as long as possible
Outlined by screenwriter Cynthia Whitcomb, the Three-Beat Rule advises writers to have a maximum of three lines of dialogue at a time, after which you should insert a dialogue tag, action line or another character's speech. Dialogue "beats" can be understood as short phrases in speech that you can say without pausing for breath. Sometimes they correlate with real sentences, sometimes they don't.
Now, you might point out that classic books often don't follow this rule, because dialogue conventions have changed over time. Nowadays, a long, uninterrupted monologue (unless it was actually constructed to be a passionate outburst or revelation) tends to feel dated and awkward. Readers also easily lose attention and interest in the face of long speeches, so the three-beat rule is definitely a must!
The technical aspects of a good dialogue
You should already know how to create meaningful and engaging conversations. Now let's turn our attention to the technical aspects of a well-written dialogue.
Eliminate unnecessary dialog tags
There are dialogue tags to clarify who is saying what , the most common tags being said , asked and answered. Other common tags (eg shouted, whispered, hissed) explain how a line of dialogue is said.
Dialogue tags are undoubtedly an important aspect of fictional conversations, but too many tags can also slow down the pace of your story or even take readers away from your story entirely. Use them with caution and attention.
Don't be afraid to use 'he said'
"He said" is often accused of being boring and overused as a dialogue tag, especially in school. But in the world of writing, this simple tag is preferred over more descriptive ones like "exclaimed," "stated," or the many other words used to replace "said."
The clarity provided by tags is often vital, but keep in mind that dialogue tags are also a mark of authorship (i.e. an unwritten narrative element in the character's voice from the author's point of view). The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose. But 'said' is much less intrusive than 'mumbled', 'gasped', 'admonished', 'lied'”.
The occasional authorship stamp won't turn readers away from your story if they're deeply into it. But the more ubiquitous you can make your dialog tags, the better. Readers skim over words like "said" and "asked" while still recording the identity of the speaker, ensuring your story keeps flowing.
Use action tags
Action tags are small attributive actions that precede or follow a line of dialogue, such as the following:
Amanda fumbled with the hem of her shirt. "I don't know if that's the best idea."
"Are you sure that's what you really want?" Brad raised an eyebrow.
They are descriptions of the expressions, movements, or even internal thoughts that accompany the speaker's words. They are included in the same paragraph as the dialogue, to indicate that the doer is also the talker.
Action tags can keep your writing varied, avoiding the need for a long list of lines ending with "said" or "answered". They can also be used to manage the pacing of a dialogue-heavy scene. They can also illustrate and add context to the conversation, so readers can evaluate the meaning of the scene beyond what was said.
All in all, they're a great way to build dialogue while also keeping readers engaged and adding movement to the scene.
Choose strong dialogue tags
If you're going to use a dialogue tag and it's important to impart the tone in which a joke is delivered, choose your tags carefully. Consider "whispered" instead of "asked softly" or "hissed" instead of "said in a nasty voice."
Use realistic tags
Many writers mistakenly use attributive actions instead of attributive tags – a grammatical error that is sure to drive copy editors crazy.
Here are two examples of attributive actions used improperly:
"I can't believe it," Emma gasped.
"It's funny," Henry chuckled.
Unless you're superhuman, you probably can't gasp or chuckle at words, yet that's exactly what the previous sentences imply. Instead, let's look at two ways to properly attribute these lines of dialogue:
"I can't believe it," Emma gasped.
Emma gasped. "I can not believe it."
"It is funny!" Henry chuckled.
"It's funny," Henry said, chuckling.
See the difference? Your dialogue may not need to be entirely realistic, but your dialogue tags certainly should be.
Cut redundancies
Many inexperienced writers also make the mistake of introducing redundancies into their dialogue. No need to write "'Ugh', he moaned" or "'Ah! Ah!" Laughed,” when only one or the other will do.
Avoid the stumbling block of the name
People rarely address the person they're talking to by their first name, unless they're greeting each other or trying to get each other's attention. Yet many writers place their characters' names in dialogue left and right.
“Annie, stop it. You're making me laugh too much."
"You started it, Michael."
“Maybe, Annie. But you're killing me like this!
See how fake it looks? If such frequent forms of addressing are common in your character's culture or have a very specific purpose in your story, then go for it. But otherwise, a name inserted to drive dialogue will only succeed in pulling readers away from your story.
Use dialogue to break up the narrative
The narrative that stretches page after page can become tiresome to read, no matter how theoretically exciting it might be. Adding a line or two of dialogue can be a great way to give your readers eyes a break, especially if you allow your point-of-view character to interact or react to the world around them.
Add variety to your dialogue scenes
This tip is about exceptions to some of the tips I've shared here. Learning to write good dialogue isn't about strictly following the rules, but rather learning which technique to use when, and emphasizing what is actually being said between characters.
If you stick to one rule all the time, like if you only use "he said" or finish each line of dialogue with an action beat, you'll tire readers quickly.
The key, then, is to have variety in the structure and use of dialogue tags or action lines throughout a scene and, by extension, throughout the book. Make "said" the default, but be flexible to change it whenever a character description or more elaborate dialogue etiquette can add nuance to the scene!
Remember that less is more
Our final tip is more of a reminder than anything else. With a "less is more" mindset, you can cut out unnecessary bits of dialogue (the "boring bits") and focus on making sure the dialogue works and keeps things going . Good writing is intentional and focused — always striving to keep the story alive and keep readers engaged — so the importance lies in quality rather than quantity.
One particular point that we haven't really addressed is repetition. When used well (that is, with clear intentions), repetition is a literary device that can help you build motifs and enrich themes in your writing. But when you're writing dialogue and find yourself repeating established information, it might be a good time to step back and review your work.
Read the dialogues aloud
Even after you've put all of these tips into practice, it can be hard to tell if you've written effective dialogue.
In my experience, the easiest way to determine if your characters' conversations ring true is to read your work aloud. Do your characters sound authentic? Does their conversation follow a natural flow? If not, reading their words aloud will definitely reveal where you went wrong.
Feeling overwhelmed by all the advice I've shared today? Don't feel like you have to master the dialogue overnight. Practice is the key to improving your skills, and perfecting any part of your manuscript requires a fair amount of proofreading. Focus on implementing one or two of these dialogue tips at a time, and you'll be writing rich, engaging conversations in no time.
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