What Good Dialogue Can Do
by Priscilla Bettis https://x.com/PriscillaBettis
Don’t you love reading a good dialogue passage in a novel? The drama, the subtext, the personalities involved! What techniques do authors use to make characters’ speech so compelling? The way people speak in real life reveals their distinct personalities (pompous, laid back, etc.). Well-written dialogue functions the same way. It distinguishes each character from another and reveals their personality quirks. Dialogue isn’t the same as real-life speech, however. In real life we are (hopefully) polite and don’t interrupt each other. But in a story, having characters interrupt each other ups the tension on the page and reveals characters’ emotions. In real life we stutter and say um a lot. A few ums make a dialogue passage seem credible, and they’re a great way to convey to the reader that a character is buying time to make up a lie. Just be mindful that too many ums and stuttered words become irritating for the reader who wants to get on with the story. This is my favorite part of a good dialogue passage: It can show a character saying something different than what he or she believes. For example, Thomas clutches Melanie to his chest and tells her he loves her dearly. But in the dialogue beat (those little gestures between spoken words), he’s leering at another woman passing by. Thomas, you cad! I hope those dialogue tips help you on your writing journey. Wait, what about the flow and pacing of dialogue? you ask. That will be addressed at the August meeting of Cisco Writers Club. Historian, librarian, and author Helen Cozart will be speaking on techniques to improve the pacing and flow of dialogue. We’ll meet at 7 PM on Thursday, August 7th, at Connect Spot inside the Myrtle Wilks Community Center, Cisco. Visitors are always welcome! Priscilla Bettis is secretary of the Cisco Writers Club. She is working on the book cover for Whispers of the Southern Moon, her inspirational poetry and short-story collection due out this fall.
