Dreame Writing Guides

Part 8 Dialogue and Character

Dialogue is essential to a story. It can help drive the plot forward naturally, in a way that few other devices can. A dialogue is different from a conversation you'd hear in the real world; it might be useless in some situations. However, each dialogue in a novel should be useful.

I. Function of dialogue

1. build one's personality

2. reveal the relationship between characters

3. convey plot details to readers

II. How to write good dialogue?

1. Make sure each character in the dialogue is using their own voice

In good dialogue, each character has their own unique way of speaking and thinking. If a character is speaking in a unique tongue, even if the author hasn't directly pointed out who is are, readers should recognize them from their manner of speaking. Note that the way a character speaks is based on their personality, which is influenced by their age, experiences, and social status. To make characters more realistic, most authors put a little bit of themselves into each character that they create. This is fine, so long as each character doesn't think, act, and behave exactly as the author they would. Every character should have their own unique voice.

Here is an example of good dialogue, taken from the book His Mate And His Mistress by Irtania Adrien:

I took a deep breath then, wriggled thumbs with one another, as my palms became sweaty, then I released it as I said, "Okay, so I have been here for the past few days, and I was wondering if it was okay for me to train with the females in the army, since I have nothing to do."

"No," was his curt reply.

"What? Why not?" I asked, actually surprised, not that I wanted to be with the, female warriors though, since I was just using it as an excuse to see him, but his refusal caught me off guard.

"Because I said so. Now, if that was the matter you wanted to address, it's been taken care of. Please see yourself out." He dismissed me with a cold glare.

From this dialogue, you should be able to create a mental image of what is going on. A cold mean male is talking with a nervous female. The male has a lofty status and is the type that would never allow others to disobey him or question his orders.

2. Set conflict or suspense within dialogues

If one dialogue narrates the plot or explains the details smoothly without adding anything new, that dialogue might be better removed. When there is a conflict between two characters, their dialogue should rouse readers' attention to entice them to continue reading.

But how do authors write good dialogue with conflicts or suspense? Many writers choose to go about doing this by using either a direct or an indirect response. A direct dialogue can convey information to audiences effectively. Indirect dialogues, on the other hand, don't rely on speech to reveal information points. They use irrelevant responses, flashbacks, interruptions, or a character's body language to add dramatic tension, which increases conflicts or offers hints that could pertain to future action.

Here is an example from the book Marrying the CEO by Kimi L. Davis:

"Well, I want the money now, only then I'll marry you," I stated.

"Sorry, little dove, can't do that," Gideon responded, shaking his head.

"Why not?"

"How would I know if you're not going to run away with the money?"

"I am not, you can trust me," I said.

"No, sorry, little one, you'll just have to wait a year for the money," Gideon said.

"50 percent," I negotiated.

"What?" Gideon asked.

"Give me half the amount right now and half when the contract is over," I explained.

Gideon breathed an audible sigh. "Fine, I'll pay you half the amount once we get married and half when the contract is over," he replied.

"Done."

3. In some cases, show, don't tell

Although writers usually know in advance how characters will respond to circumstances as they unfold, it is not necessary to always put everything on the table for the readers to see. Let readers use their imagination and come to some conclusions based on the details you have already given.

Look at these two lines of dialogue:

a. "I hate you!" she says to him angrily.

b. Her lips closed tight, and she glared at him with narrow eyes.

Obviously, "b" reads better than "a", in that "b" paints a vivid picture of how angry she is. Body language plays an integral part in a dialogue. If you include a character's body language in a scene, it helps the readers imagine what's going on. It is better to use visual cues to express how a person is feeling than to straight out say what they are feeling. If the cues are well written, the reader will know what the character is feeling.

4. Be careful about the format of the dialogue. 

If you wish to write a readable dialogue, there are many writing rules to follow and here we list two typical points for your reference:

a. Use quotation marks

Using quotation marks is one of the essential rules for writing dialogue, because it is a GRAMMATICAL RULE. Whenever writing, grammatical rules MUST be observed. In a story, quotation marks tell the reader when someone is speaking. All punctuation should be kept inside the quotation marks. Examples of what this looks like can be seen in any of the examples above or below.

When two characters are talking, please give each character their paragraph. This helps readers to follow the dialogue.

Here is an example of good dialogue, taken from the book Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets by J.K. Rowling:

"Tie that around the bars," said Fred, throwing the end of a rope to Harry.

"If the Dursleys wake up, I'm dead," said Harry as he tied the rope tightly around a bar and Fred revved up the car.

"Don't worry," said Fred, "and stand back."

b. Use dialogue tags

Tags like "said", "asked", or "replied" are among the most common tags in dialogue, but, if overused, they can leave a story feeling dry. It is important to spice it up. A character's actions or emotions can be revealed by using a variety of tags. Sometimes tags can be used as tools to create a more vivid picture of what is going on in a scene. "Exclaimed," "shouted," "roared," and "whined" are examples of expressive tags.

Here also takes an example from the book Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets:

“No,” croaked Harry. “Please… they’ll kill me…” 

What's more, you could drop some repeat tags if the dialogue just continues between two people, still the example from Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets:

Aunt Petunia’s masterpiece of a pudding, the mountain of cream and sugared violets, was floating up near the ceiling. On top of a cupboard in the corner crouched Dobby.

“No,” croaked Harry. “Please… they’ll kill me…”

“Harry Potter must say he’s not going back to school—”

“Dobby… please…”

“Say it, sir…”

“I can’t—”

Dobby gave him a tragic look.

“Then Dobby must do it, sir, for Harry Potter’s own good.”

At last, if you have any other thoughts or experiences that would like to discuss or share with us, feel free to write down your comment under this episode. 

                                                                                                                                                                             BY Cherise