When you have finished reading this article, you will have a good idea on how to write believable dialogue and know when you can break the rules. Using effective dialog is a main part of any story. Good dialog moves the story forward whiles it brings life to the characters. Dialogue will engage your readers as you reveal your characters to them.
Per the Encarta World English Dictionary, dialog is defined as "the words spoken by characters in a book... or a section of a work that contains spoken words.
Dialogue has several functions:
? To express through conversations what the reader must know so they can understand the character's actions, motivations and thoughts.
To convey character that will demonstrate what kind of people live in your story.
To effectively give the reader a sense of time and place by the use of rhythmic vocabulary, dialect, and speech patterns of various people.
And, lastly, it develops conflict.
When you write a natual flowing conversation, you have written good dialog. Sticking to the rules of grammar will make your character's speech stilted and dry. Dialog must flow easily, like two friends discussing a problem.
Some simple guidelines are.
? Spoken words are not always complete sentences.
People speak in familar terminology, and not always with the best grammar.
Use words that will reveal things such as a character's ethnicity, historical time period, age and gender.
Give your characters hidden personality through dialog.
Take notes as you hear real-life conversations. Unlike real life, too much dialog is distracting. To avoid this over zealousness, keep it simple.
Let’s look at the scene between Mammy and Miss Scarlett in chapter five of Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell.
Mammy's tone became wheedling.
"Now, Miss Scarlett, you be good an' come eat jes'a lil. Miss Carreen an' Miss Suellen done eat all dey'n."
When you watch this kind of scene in a movie, it is one thing, but when a reader has to wade through pages of it, it's altogether another. Have you ever tried to read "Brair Rabbit"!
Far and few between are the times that an experienced author should try to write this type of language. For example, an Irish brogue is a monster to read. Your readers will thank you if you stay in the well-defined terms of plain dialog.
Although people do talk for hours on end without stopping to admire scenery, it won't work that way in writing dialog. As a general rule of thumb, you should insert a break that describes scenery or setting every three or four paragraphs of dialogue.
Use good taste in your dialogue. Don't use long scenes with people arguing; this is one way that dialog can be overbearing. It takes time to learn to write believable dialog.
To write believable dialogue, sit in train stations, buses, or a restaurant and listen to people talk. Take notes when possible.
