When I first started writing, I suuuucked at dialogue. The total worst. When I read other books, I could tell when other people’s dialogue wasn’t great (and I knew mine wasn’t the best) but I just couldn’t get over that barrier of bad.
Dialogue is hard. Some people have an innate skill at it. We call them talented jerks. Just kidding. We love you! Even those who have innate skills have to work on their craft, remember. Realistic dialogue in books is a little different than real-life conversation because real-life conversation is full of filler words and tangents, but that doesn’t mean your dialogue can’t sound real.
You know what took me from hating writing dialogue and being bad at it to loving writing dialogue and being good at it?
Being a playwright. Everything is dialogue!
Let’s get into it.
Three Golden Rules
Learn your rules, you better learn your rules. If you don’t, you’ll be eaten in your sleep.
- Dwight Schrute
Rule 1: It’s all about the purpose. Remember back in the day we talked about compelling first pages and first chapters and I warned against writing about the banal? It’s the same with dialogue. It should advance the plot, reveal character, or both. It shouldn’t just be pleasant chit-chat. Not only is it often boring, it slows down the pace.
Rule 2: Unique New York. Every character’s voice is shaped by their background, personality, and education. A college professor will probably talk differently than a college student. They’ll certainly talk differently than an elementary student!
Rule 3: No info-dumping! Dialogue should reveal information naturally, not like Kronk (although that was used for humour.)
Revealing Character and Backstory through Conversation
While it can be difficult to avoid telling with dialogue—because by its very nature it is very telling—it is possible! If you want to show a character who has trouble with emotional intimacy, you can have them be sarcastic. If you want to show a character who is intelligent, you can use dialogue to show that. Or if you want to twist that, you can have a character who thinks they’re intelligent but they use words incorrectly. There’s a character in The Compound (Aisling Rawle) portrayed like this. It’s great.
Dialogue Tags
You might think that “said” is too bland and should be replaced with more dynamic dialogue tags. In fact, “said” is an invisible tag and is often the best choice because it disappears in the background and allows for the pace to move along.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use dynamic dialogue tags, but you’ll want to use them sparingly so when they are used, they’re adding to the moment. You can also use action beats to show emotion in lieu of a tag.
“I’m not going,” he said angrily.
VS
“I’m not going.” He crossed his arms and glared at the door.
Dialogue is what makes characters feel real to the reader. Don’t be afraid to use it; but also remember it is a skill that takes time! Some people might get the hang of it right away while others won’t. If you’re feeling stuck, think of it like a play. All you get is dialogue!
Have a checklist, on me! This checklist will get you started on building more authentic and purposeful conversations.