Mastering the Art of of Writing Dialog

by Sarah Sally Hamer @SarahSallyHamer

We basically have four ways to allow a character to express: 

• through action
• through body language
• through thoughts (in the POV character)
• through what they say

So, what do they say?

Like each unhappy family is unhappy in their own way—my thanks to Charles Dickens—each character expresses in their own, very individual ways. An angry character might slam a door, for instance, or shout. Another one may smile with just their mouth, where a twitch in their cheek is the only thing that gives that anger away. Some get very calm and talk very softly. All these reactions are normal, easy to describe, and very evocative of anger, based on the character. 

But dialog is magic. 

Words can flow and stop, depending on how the character feels. We can hide great secrets behind a blank face, with words barely cracking the façade. We can allow our characters to bellow their joy from the housetop. We can tell our character's truth in the darkness, choking back tears. And we can use words to comfort or harm, please or irritate, calm or kill. It all comes back to what you choose to have your characters say.

Dialog should be tight, concise, believable, and intriguing. It should constantly be deeply integrated into the story, with each word paying its own way. Ultimately, it should make the story real.

Here are a few tips:

• No small talk (How are you today? I'm fine, thanks.) unless the answer to the question is extremely important.

• Keep dialog short. No big speeches.

• No talking heads or long stretches of only dialog. The reader can easily get lost in the weeds.

• Make sure the dialog reflects the speaking character's emotional state at the time. That will change as the story changes. In so many words, a character who always talks exactly the same way throughout the book, is boring.

• Characters should not sound like you. Or like the other characters. Make each of them an individual.

• Don't use a lot of accents/dialects. They are hard to read.

• Allow your character to hide his or her feelings in dialog. Use sub-text to conceal what they feel.

• Don't try to make your dialog sound like real speech, or to be perfectly grammatical. Neither works. 

• Read it out loud. To yourself, to another person, to your cat. Let someone else read the dialog to you. Listen for stilted, unnatural phrases. Create interesting ways for your characters to express.

• Don't be boring!

And, once you get the dialog right and your characters speak their truth, you'll be amazed at how they come alive.

Post a line of your best dialog. I'd love to hear it!

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Sarah (Sally) Hamer is a lover of books, a teacher of writers, and a believer in a good story. Most of all, she is eternally fascinated by people and how they 'tick'. She’s passionate about helping people tell their own stories, whether through fiction or through memoir. Writing in many genres—mystery, science fiction, fantasy, romance, medieval history, non-fiction—‚she has won awards at both local and national levels, including two Golden Heart finals.

A teacher of memoir, beginning and advanced creative fiction writing, and screenwriting at Louisiana State University in Shreveport for almost twenty years, she also teaches online for Margie Lawson at WWW.MARGIELAWSON.COM. Sally is a free-lance editor and book coach at Touch Not the Cat Books, with many of her students and clients becoming successful, award-winning authors. 

You can find her at hamerse@bellsouth.net or WWW.SALLYHAMER.BLOGSPOT.COM

From Sally: I wish to express gratitude to the giants upon whose shoulders I stand and who taught me so much about the writing craft. I would list every one, if it were only possible.