Ideas for Writing Great Dialogue
Dialogue can make or break your flash fiction or short story. Here are a few tips on writing great dialogue.
I’ve read short stories that had no dialogue in them. We all have. Some of the stories were pretty good. I’ve even written a few flash fiction stories with no dialogue in them. But I don’t like reading flash fiction or short stories that have no dialogue.
For one thing, dialogue helps to break up all that solid writing. The writing is simply more appealing and easier on the eye when it contains dialogue.
For another thing, dialogue is a great way to show character and to move the story forward. In real life we judge people by what they say and how they say it.
Readers judge characters by what they say and how they say it.
So, when writing dialogue, a writer should keep these things in mind.
- Dialogue should move the story toward its resolution.
- Dialogue should provide the reader with new information that is not anywhere else in the story.
- Dialogue is about natural human speech. It should read differently than the rest of the story. The only exception is when the story is being told in natural human speech; but telling a story this way is rare for good reasons. It does not allow for the dialogue to stand out from the story.
- Finally, dialogue is about the characters talking to each other as if the reader is not there.
You will find great examples of good dialogue in My Ebook for Serious Writers.
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December 16th, 2010 at 10:01 am
You have great ideas on this subject.
December 16th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Guy, again, as always; wonderful advice. I am trying desperately to keep my dialogue from sounding contrite in my work and all the help I can get is appreciated. Thanks.
December 16th, 2010 at 10:36 am
If you were here I would say, “Hey Guy, those are really great ideas.” Of course you’re not here so I said to myself, “Self, guy is right on when he speaks of using dialogue in stories.” Seriously, I agree with your assessment. Thank you.
December 16th, 2010 at 10:47 am
You always have great insights. I have a friend who writes children stories, who actually keeps a journal of things she hears children say and then uses the phrases in stories she writes. She says it helps her keep her dialogue real to how children talk.
December 16th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
nice
December 16th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
points well recieved–thnx
December 16th, 2010 at 8:15 pm
thanks for the information.
December 16th, 2010 at 10:06 pm
Great advice,
December 17th, 2010 at 12:14 am
Thanks for sharing these good ideas.
December 17th, 2010 at 1:36 am
Good advice for writing or adding dialogue to a story.
December 17th, 2010 at 6:34 am
Dialogue is key to stories of all lengths, it brings the characters to life. In my experience at first getting dialogue right is tricky its one of those practise practise and more practise makes perfect. LB
December 17th, 2010 at 8:16 am
Good dialogue is probably the best tool a writer has for making a story of any length come alive. The reader actually hears in his or her mind the voices of the characters. Dialogue is like the audio portion of the story.
December 17th, 2010 at 11:04 am
This is a fine piece of work.