Tips for Better Dialogue
Notes from Heather Newton
I enroll in writing craft classes to hone my skills and build my creative confidence. Last week, I attended a Zoom class with novelist Heather Newton on “Writing Better Dialogue.” It was offered by Charlotte Lit, an organization that offers loads of outstanding non-credit classes in writing, many of which are available remotely. I’ve included a link (hover over org name above) so you can check them out.
According to Heather Newton, Dialogue:
should be interesting, perhaps surprising—and not used just for filler.
should advance the plot.
often reveals character.
develops relationships between characters.
enriches understanding of a situation.
reveals something about the speaker.
depicts negotiation, and power shifts, both large and small.
helps to establish the “world,” by its inclusion of jargon and emotional reactions.
The more of these eight essentials your dialogue achieves, the better it is working.
Heather added that dialogue should not be used as a source of facts. People do not “talk dictionary” to one another. Nor is it good for supplanting facts about people, places or objects. Avoid monologues that merely express extended brooding. Monologues are not conversations, and they’re not how people actually express themselves. Good dialogue is better, and more streamlined, than true conversation. I heartily agree.
Here is Heather’s list of dos and don’ts.
Do use double quotes around dialogue.
Final punctuation goes inside the closed quotation mark. If followed by a dialogue tag, the final punctuation is a comma inside the closed quotation mark.
Combine a speaker’s words, gestures and internal thought in a paragraph, and then start a new paragraph with the opposing speaker’s words, gestures and thoughts.
Don’t repeat each other’s names. People don’t do that in conversation.
Don’t state the facts that every speaking character knows.
Don’t announce in prose what is going to be revealed in the dialogue to follow. Choose one or the other but not both.
If you show a character’s gesture in prose, it’s possible a dialogue tag won’t be needed because the gesture might reveal who said what. “Louisa rocked the bundle in her arms. ‘Sleep, little baby.’” (No dialogue tag is needed.) Sometimes this is true with internal thoughts too. “The jurist quaked as the condemned stared at him, ‘Oh I hope I never see that face again.’”
In general, do use dialogue tags. Most experts say that writers only need to use “said” and “asked” since they tend to read invisibly while still clueing readers as to who is doing the saying or asking. Heather adds that it’s okay to use verbs that indicate the volume used, such as whispered or shouted, but to avoid all fancy dialogue verbs such as exclaimed or retorted. Modern readers find those verbs distracting and they slow or stop the reading flow.
Dialogue tags can also give readers a pause in time. Putting a dialogue tag in the middle of a statement can slightly slow the flow of the spoken word. Example: “Yes,” the inspector said, “I did look inside the crypt.”
Beware of adverbs attached to dialogue tags. Most can be eliminated. The dialogue itself should show the reader how the words are spoken.
Do remember that NOT responding is a part of dialogue, too. Creating a delay in the conversation can be very effective.
Eliminate small talk. Start with the substantive part of the dialogue. Only in very specific conversations does small talk reveal a character trait, such as obsequiousness or primness.
Do make use of gesture and internal thought. Consider the gulf between what is being said and thought.
The formatting choice utilized for internal thoughts should be consistent throughout.
As for my opinion, my three mantras for writing dialogue into my fiction writing are:
Dialogue is essentially a conversation between two or more characters. The reader must always know who the participants are in the conversation. Sure, there are times when a character talks to herself or when dialogue occurs between a character and the reader. But these are not the usual scenarios. It should be rare that a single line of dialogue floats on your page without a response from another character.
When approaching a scene in dialogue go in late and leave quickly. In other words, write in prose until you can’t avoid the conversation another second. Then jump into dialogue. As soon as the important stuff is said (the stuff that the reader needs to know,) leave dialogue and return to prose.
Above all, clarity is paramount. If many characters are in conversation, make sure their voices and ideas are distinct. Slow your reader down so they can absorb what is being said. If the concepts are complex, perhaps dialogue isn’t the best way to convey them. If the dialogue is murky, add more dialogue tags or cut back on the gestures and internal thoughts.
If you have any favorite tips for poweful dialogue, please share them below.