writermag.com • The Writer | 23nals to readers that dialogue isn’t all
that important in your story. That’s a
bad message to send.
Saying “Great weather, huh?” is
most likely a waste of space on the
page, right along with a “What’s up?” +
“Not much! You?” + “Same old, same
old!” exchange.
In short, only include dialogue that
reveals character or advances the plot.
Preferably both.
4
TAG EFFECTIVELY
Most how-to articles and books
advise writers to stick with “said”
as the all-purpose dialogue tag.
Great advice, but only 90% of the time.
A rare but well-placed “shouted,” “whis-
pered,” or “whined” can help make an
important moment more potent.
Warning: Don’t get overly cute
with descriptive dialogue tags. People
rarely – if ever – “breathe,” “spit,” or
“moan” their words.
Bonus tip: If you’re using “said” a
lot, try implying a dialogue tag.
Bob sighed. “I can’t find my car keys
anywhere.”
“I can’t stand those cats.” Jerry cov-
ered his ears with his hands. “All that
mewing!”
5
BE DISTINCT
“Not all your characters should
speak the same way,” notes Galef,
“just as they shouldn’t all look or
behave similarly. Consider young vs.
old, articulate vs. tongue-tied, and so
on.” He’s exactly right. Far too many
otherwise meticulous writers neglect
to find and utilize their characters’ dis-
tinct voices.
For example, instead of saying, “She
couldn’t shoot fish in a barrel,” my
Arkansas friend would say, “She couldn’t
whack a pig in the butt with a banjo.”
Same concept but very differently told.6
USE SILENCE
A Japanese friend once remarked
to Galef, “You Americans think
that no reply means no answer.”
Consider how the power of silence –
used sparingly – might impact a con-
versation.7
SUMMARIZE
Most writers stick to direct dia-
logue, meaning the reader “hears”
it all as the characters say it. All the
dialogue is in quotes. Don’t forget about
summary dialogue, though, which can
speed things up in a useful way.
“This job sucks,” Martha said. “I quit!”
She never wanted to see his boss’s
weaselly face again, she said. He was a
low-down liar who screwed employees
on bonuses, and his breath could peel
paint off the wall. She’d brewed his coffee
with water from the aquarium, she
declared. More than once.
He glared at her. “You through?”
“A b s o l u t e l y.”
See how this delivered the power of
her ranting without having to see/hear
every single word, which might’ve
taken far longer to render on the page?
This is an efficient way to get things
moving and still give a solid sense of
what a character said.8
LISTEN TO THE PROS
You’re not alone. See what pros
have to offer in terms of creating
effective dialogue.“It’s dialogue that gives your
cast their voices and is crucial
in defining their characters.”
—Stephen King“Never use an adverb to mod-
ify the verb ‘said’...he admon-
ished gravely.”
—Elmore Leonard“Dialogue in fiction should be
reserved for the culminating
moments and regarded as the
spray into which the great
wave of narrative breaks in
curving toward the watcher on
the shore.”
—Edith Wharton“Don’t forget; human beings
talk because they want some-
thing. They want to tell you
something, they want to get
some information, they want
to express something. Dia-
logue is ALWAYS driven by
your character’s agenda.”
—Dan Brown“Nothing teaches you as much
about writing dialogue as lis-
tening to it.”
—Judy BlumeBring it all together, and instead of
your dialogue being the parts readers
skim, it’ll become the very thing that
keeps your story roaring forward.Ryan G. Van Cleave is the author of 20
books and a frequent contributor to The Writer.
Visit him at RyanGVanCleave.com and
OnlyPictureBooks.com.“The two main problems with
dialogue are making it sound real
and keeping it interesting.”