Writing Successful Dialogue

By Marc Philips

Mark Philips

Dialogue in work meant to be read (as opposed to that spoken onstage) requires you to manage at least two simultaneous conversations with concentric purpose. The first, a conversation between author and reader, is the narrative. Within the narrative is a conversation between characters that the author must pass along without damaging the suspension of disbelief. This is the most difficult aspect of writing fiction. Here are some general rules.

No adverbs in reference to dialogue
- Any descriptive comment following lines of dialogue will only diminish the effect
Attributive remarks only when absolutely necessary
- Which is almost never with two- and three-party conversations, after the beginning
Minimal scene blocking
- Interrupts the flow of dialogue
- Block with misunderstandings (indicating distance, ambient noise, facing the other way)
- Block with word choice (people speak differently when nose to nose, out of breath, etc)
- Block by directing remarks toward or against a character
No linear stretches
- Conversations grow geometrically, or they jump between subjects erratically
No Q&A for plot development
- Verbal answers are rarely 100% declarative, or 100% responsive – almost never both
- Directing the plot with dialogue is only appropriate in children’s books
Use lies in dialogue, especially in omniscient narration
Incorporate non sequiturs appropriately
No contrivances (distinguished from colloquialisms)
- Don’t phonetically spell for accents
- Don’t overdo dialects, if you must use them
- The ellipsis in conversation has no meaning whatsoever
Utilize restraint – as regards:
- Profanity
- Exclamations (with attendant punctuation), as people rarely exclaim anything
- Lengthy put-downs and witty verbal sparring
Listen, pay attention
- Do you speak like you write your dialogue? Do you know anyone who does?
- How often in conversation are you allowed to finish a thought in one exchange?
- Does everything merit a considered response from you?
- How often is anyone convinced of anything by the end of a single conversation?
- Record yourself and others – Do you speak in complete, correct sentences?
Laziness kills dialogue
Bad dialogue kills the narrative
- Until you do it effectively, stay away from it as much as possible

About the author:

Marc Phillips has published poetry, non-fiction and short fiction since 1991. His debut novel, The Legend of Sander Grant (Telegram 2009), is available now. Marc lives and writes in Texas most of the time. http://www.marcphillips.net/