Dialogue

People speak very differently

• Dialogue is not just two people talking in a vacuum with no body or face. You need the setting and time of day and season of the year, just set up the scene.
• Make sure the words someone is saying is in character as people speak differently. It’s their character.
• Also, there is the subtext within a conversation. The subtext is not what people are saying, it’s what people are implying while talking to each other.
• When people talks, they don’t just utter the words. Some people use hand gestures and facial expressions. They use body language to emphasise their words. These actions can be added to the dialogue.
• It is important for dialogue to get to the point quickly and do not start with conversation fluff like:

“Oh hiya.”
“How was your day?”
“Oh, it’s ok, and yours?”

• A lot of people also use umm’s and err’s in everyday conversations. Using these is good to imply thinking and doubt. But don’t overuse these as they slow down the dialogue.
• Familiarisation is needed as you don’t speak to your best friend the same way that you speak to someone you have never met before.
• Don’t forget that the dialogue tag ‘said’ is invisible when reading and is usually ignored and lets the conversation flow. Using other tags interrupt the flow of the conversation. Do Not use them unless the communication flow is intended to be interrupted.