The crafting of good dialogue is a challenge every writer faces. Both a liability and an opportunity, dialogue can make or break a story. Explore our tips for writing a story with great dialogue and expressing your tone in writing.
Writing Good Dialogue in a Story
No matter which genre you write (or read), the importance of good dialogue cannot be overstated. No matter how compelling the worldbuilding or scene setting is, bad dialogue can completely undermine the experience for the reader.
Well Written Dialogue has the Power to:
- Add depth and richness to the text
- Draw readers into the story
- Allow readers to connect with the characters
Arguably, the interaction between characters is even more important than the premise of the plot itself. Just as a great performance from a talented actor can elevate a mediocre-to-average plot, well-written dialogue can elevate a text, either adding to an already excellent story or shoring up narrative shortcomings with compelling characters.
Finding The Right Writing Balance
When writing dialogue, it can be difficult to strike a balance between natural and interesting. Too natural and you end up with a conversation that sounds like the mundane routine of everyday life, which for many readers isn’t what they want out of a story.
By contrast, dialogue that is too demonstrative can be distracting and unbelievable. So, how do we find that balance? Well, we asked some of our Inkitt writers about it, and they were kind enough to share some of their experiences, thoughts, and dialogues!
Four Tips for Dialogue Writing from the Inkitt Community
1. Avoid Using Dialogue to Over-Explain to Readers
It can be tempting to get down in the infodumps and use expository dialogue to explain things to readers. It’s easy, and it’s something commonly found in writing. It can also be a big mistake.
While we hesitate to say that this should never be done, we think it should be done sparingly and only to explain things that the characters (as well as the readers) would have no other way of knowing.
Try to avoid having your characters explain things to the reader that they (the characters) should already know, and try to avoid using dialogue to dump vast amounts of information on the readers all at once. This can be distracting and feel unnaturally stilted, functioning as an awkward way to convey information rather than the thoughts and feelings of the characters.
Just imagine a random stranger walking up to you and explaining everything about the day you’re about to have or having a friend explain things that you both are already well aware of. It would be weird and offputting, right?
The characters’ dialogue should, generally, be reactive to the world around them rather than the thing that establishes the world around them.
Eliza Grace: For dialogue, I am always careful not to info dump or introduce things that should be known to my MC because to me, as a reader, it comes across as lazy writing. If something is [common] knowledge, my character doesn’t need to be told that, so I’d need to find [a] different way to get it across.
Nara Eve: [Avoid too] much expository dialogue. It’s important to use dialogue to deliver information, but it can sound robotic if not presented correctly. It should be balanced with narration, especially if additional context is absolutely needed. Use dialogue to deliver information in the context of what is known between the characters.
2. Avoid Speaking in Your Own Tone and Voice
Remember, while you are all your characters, they can’t all be you. That is to say, they shouldn’t all sound like you. Distinctive voices and personalities help you keep the reader’s attention and interest. Characters that sound the same can be tedious and confusing.
This is not to say that there is never a situation in which different characters should sound the same, but as a general rule, it should be avoided. To that end, it can be worthwhile to spend some time crafting your characters even before you begin writing the story itself. Create a back story and a personality for them. You may not even use this information in the story, but it will give you a sense of who they are and how they act.
Spend time acting out the characters to see what feels natural for each of them.
Eliza Grace: [M]aking sure that my characters have their own voice is very important. My boyfriend’s friend group loves to do impressions of each other, and it’s a small game I started to play with my characters. If all of them sound the same, it’s not good. I want the dialogues to feel natural but also for each person to have a distinct enough. That’s when I think of doing their impressions; I know EXACTLY what to do.
Nara Eve: Part of my process is spending a lot of time rehearsing and daydreaming dialogue, both for fun and to hear whether it sounds natural being spoken.
Things I try to avoid: Having any two characters that sound the same unless there is a specific reason for it (e.g., close siblings or people who have experienced a traumatic event together).
Things I always do: Consider every facet of the character’s history, culture, and identity in every word they speak. Every person has a unique perspective, and speech is one of the most effective mediums by which to reflect that.
3. Show the Reader, Don’t Tell: Trust Your Audience
We know, we know. Sorry to trot out this old adage in a post about verbal communication, but it’s still valid. Remember, a lot of communication is non-verbal. Showing the way your character acts and reacts can be more compelling than telling us how your character feels and what they’re thinking.
Don’t underestimate your audience; they can pick up on non-verbal cues and infer their meanings. They have to do it all the time in real life, so there’s no reason to think they can’t do it in fiction.
Eliza Grace: [D]ialogue tags can get really repetitive really fast, so I feel like there should be a justification for it. So if I want to show my character being done, I’ll say that they’re rubbing their eyes as they’re saying something, if they’re annoyed [they’ll] roll their eyes or tap their pens.
Elsa Green: [N]ot every piece of dialogue needs a speech tag. (establishing who said the quotation and/or clarifying how it was said) Something that I notice trips up a lot of beginners is the need to play the “He said, she said,” game. Speech tags can definitely help to slow down narrative flow when you’re trying to build suspense, but they can be detrimental if you’re trying to convey quickness.
So instead of writing:
He quickly shouted, “Let that go!”
You could write, “Let that go!”
Because this is actually quicker to read, the reader automatically understands the shout (conveyed by the exclamation point) was probably quickly done.
You can do the same in scenes that only have 2 characters. Since a new speaker is indicated by a line break, you don’t need to establish which character is speaking every time. Just knowing which two characters are in the scene and which character speaks first is usually enough for most readers to figure out which character is talking when. If you’re not sure it’s clear, skip the “X said” and give them a gesture or action that puts them solidly in the setting of your scene. (Bonus: if you have a character that speaks in a different visual format, i.e. italics, you can potentially include more than 2 characters in the conversation.)
Nara Eve: Give each character their own verbal and nonverbal quirks or tics. Do they fidget a lot? Do they do a funny wink that they can’t control when they’re lying? There are no limits to the unique behaviors surrounding speech. Leverage the above to deliver the energy you want to convey when describing the manner in which a character is saying something. I often find invoking their habits more effective than handing the reader the answer in the tag (“she clapped her hands, a smile beaming on her face” instead of “she said excitedly,” e.g.).
4. Setting the Tone with Dialogue in Your Writing
Dialogue sets the tone for the story. What kind of story are you trying to tell? The dialogue should reflect that. In writing, just as in life, what you say as well as how you say it can convey a wealth of information both implicitly and explicitly. So, decide not only what you want to say, but what feelings and thoughts you want to evoke.
Andrea: O.C.: I have a lot of fun writing dialogue, where I try my best to showcase as much possible of a character’s special traits and quirks. It also can add dynamic to an otherwise more static scene, or break monotonous but necessary descriptions, world-building, etc. I avoid using repetitive greetings if not absolutely necessary or without serving a specific purpose (inside joke, pun, etc.)
Arri Stone: Oh, dialogue is an important part of your characters and bringing a story to life. You can have so many emotions in the way someone talks.
Michele Torlot: I use a lot of dialogue in my books. The one thing I try to do is to make it sound natural. I try to bring into it the emotions that the speaker is feeling at the time.
So, What’s the Best Way to Craft Dialogue?
Look, at the end of the day, there really is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to craft dialogue. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Every writer has to figure out what works for them. That said, the above tips are good general guidelines for things writers may wish to avoid or implement in their dialogue.
These tips are not intended to define your journey, just to help you avoid some of the more common pitfalls. Think of them as helpful traffic signs. They’re not telling you where to go, just warning you of potential hazards ahead.
What about you? What’s your process? What have we described that you implement in your own writing? What do you do that we didn’t go over? Tell us! We want to know! Give the Inkitt Community a shout on Discord! 😀
Inkitt Favorites: Examples of Great Dialogue
As a special bonus, we asked the Inkitt community to provide us with some of their favorite dialogues that they’ve written! See below!
Andrea O.C.: “Good, you’re here, V. Maybe you can put some sense back into that thick skull of his. Or whack him across the head with one of your jujitsu moves. Maybe that will also jog his memory and revert it to his damn self. I’m out of here.” Vic’s out the door, slamming it shut before I can even get a word in.
“Okay, then. Hello to you too. Do I wanna know what that was about? Is it like a lover’s quarrel, or is there something business-related I should know about?” I can see Kellan intently staring at me with his mouth slightly ajar, like he’s about to say something, but no words come out.
Arri Stone: I do love adding a bit of humour in [my dialogue]. I don’t have a favourite line, but I have a memorable one. It is from an old story I wrote over 3 years ago: ‘Once Upon a Snowball Fight’.
Patricia came over. “Frankie, your reindeers are smoking.”
“Good one Patricia, are you sure you haven’t been smoking something funny?” Frankie creased up laughing.
Jackson looked up. “No, Dad, she’s not joking. Your reindeers are smoking, actually, they’re on fire now.”
“Shit!”
(He is talking about his Xmas lights decorations outside his house. FYI 😂)
Eliza Grace: [F]or my favourite dialogue, it’s a short excerpt from my NaNoWriMo project, just because I feel like it conveys not just the conversation but the personality types and approaches of two characters on an issue in a way that’s pretty clear:
“He is the friend that introduced me to Mr Rump yesterday,” Mia nodded.
“I’d prefer Stilies, actually,” he interrupted which earned him a stare of daggers from Mia.
“I’d prefer to keep the relationship professional,” she responded, and Lucinda nodded approvingly.
Elsa Green: “I hadn’t thought about what to do about clothes for you, yet.”
Put him in a dress.
Daniella looked down at Mona. “No.”
He’ll look pretty. Her tail flicked.
“You’re really discrediting yourself about your knowledge of sexy, Mona.”
“What’s the cat saying?” Nicodemus leaned over the counter and frowned at Mona.
“She wants to put you in a dress.”
“I’m not wearing a bloody dress.”
“Well no, none of my dresses will fit you.”
Michelle Torlot: This is some dialogue I wrote, which didn’t make it to the final cut, as I changed part of the storyline, but it’s still one of my favourites. Swear words have been blanked out.
I heard the Alpha’s voice once again.
“Give me the key to those handcuffs, you ***** moron! Who did this, she’s a *****pup!” he growled, “When I find them I’m going to rip their ****** head off.”
“She’s human, Alpha,” the guard retorted, “it’s not any of…”
“I don’t give a flying ***** what she is! Human, wolf, or ****** antelope, you don’t do this to a pup!” the Alpha growled.
Nara Eve: I’m not sure if I have a favorite dialogue I’ve written, but here’s one I’ve been working on –
“D’ya hear that?” Helaneth whispered, prompting Al’mar to listen in. Her outstretched arm stopped him short of his next step. The wind carried the sniffles and sobs of a private lament from deeper within the darkness of the forest.
“That is not Dirien,” Al’mar whispered back.
“‘Course it isn’t. But what if whatever it is has got him?”
“I suppose this means you want to get closer to it to find out.”
“Ah, yep,” Helaneth said, her lips popping.
“Dirien’s the light of my life, but none of it’s comin’ from the attic. He’d be the first to fall for the classic cryin’ (w)itch in the forest that lures you in to suck out your soul or what have ya.”
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