One of my favorite compliments while writing a book is how my dialogue “feels real.” I go out of my way to make sure that each line doesn’t make the reader cringe with embarrassment. Well, unless it was on purpose in the story.
Perhaps I have a character with embarrassing traits whose purpose is to talk with a bit of a cringe factor.
In any case, dialogue is an important aspect of any book. How the characters speak can make or break the plot. As such, it’s imperative that you do what you can to provide a realistic conversation.
I’m not just talking about using proper syntax or grammar. In fact, no one has a built-in spellchecker, and many of us often use words that would be deemed improper English.
But those faults in our speech patterns are part of what makes the dialogue feel real.
7 Steps for Writing Good Dialogue
A conversation in a book needs to make sense while progressing the story forward. If it is terribly written or structured, it can suck the life out of your manuscript.
Think about bad movies you’ve watched over the years. How many did you dislike because of poor interaction between characters or verbiage that just seemed out of place? The same thing can happen in a book.
Let’s take a look at seven things I do while writing good dialogue. Of course, keep in mind that when it comes to writing, the term “good” is subjective to each reader.
Nonetheless, these are the steps I take that have made a lot of readers, writers, and editors enjoy the dialogue in my books.
1. Behaviors and Mannerisms
The behaviors and mannerisms of your characters will directly affect how they speak. If your character is supposed to be sarcastic, then he or she would use sarcasm throughout the book.
Behaviors and mannerisms are one of the first things I plan out for my characters. In fact, the planning board in Reedsy makes setting all of this up relatively easy.
The bottom line is that you want dialogue to be true to a character’s nature. Whether the character is timid or narcissistic, behaviors and mannerisms influence dialogue.
2. Slang, Dialect, Broken, and Accented
Perhaps one of the hardest elements to keep in mind is how each character “talks,” especially if you have a lot of them to manage. Slang terms, regional dialects, broken language (such as English), and accents are part of a person’s dialogue.
For instance, in Shadows of Atlantic City, I have an older character who spent most of his time in the southwest in the late 1800s. A lot of his dialogue is derived from accents, broken English, and slang of that era. It’s in contrast to the main character who is more educated and proper.
To really capture certain types of language, it’s always a good idea to do some research. Watch some movies or listen to some folk in your area. Pay close attention to how certain people speak. It can help you create a realistic tone for your character.
3. Being Scene Appropriate
Next is quite obvious, but I’ve seen a lot of folk write themselves into the ground thanks to inappropriate tone. I’m not just talking about being crass or vulgar.
Appropriate speech for the scene is important if you want your audience to connect with the story. A more serious scene requires a bit more of a serious tone unless it’s coming from the comic relief.
Don’t underestimate the value of the shock factor.
In any case, you have to put yourself into the scene and realize what your characters would say during that specific instance. For some of you, this should be quite easy. As I said, though, I’ve seen it get overlooked, creating a disconnect within the chapter.
4. Mixing In Movement
Good dialogue is more than just words. Mixing in a bit of movement keeps the story moving forward and can accentuate the scene.
Here is an example of what I mean:
“I don’t think that is appropriate,” he said.
“Why, because it tastes good?” she asked.
“No, because it’s a cat,” he replied.
vs
“I don’t think that’s appropriate,” he said, picking up the tongs next to the barbecue pit.
“Why, because it tastes good?” she asked, taking a sip from the wine glass.
“No, because it’s a cat.” He slid the tongs under and across the steak and flipped it over, grease sizzling from the sudden exposure to heat. The smell of salt, pepper, and various spices wafted in the air.
In this example, I also added conjunctions because they are more appropriate to how most people speak in the United States.
Now, not every line of dialogue needs action. In reality, description slows the pace of the story. However, it can highlight certain scenes quite nicely to help the reader envision what is going on in their heads.
The trick is to not overdo the actions and descriptions during a conversation.
5. Separating Characters
When writing dialogue, it’s important that the reader understands who is speaking. And if you’re adding too much to a line or paragraph of text, it can get quite jumbled.
Sure, dialect, accents, and slang can create a divide between characters in dialogue. However, you also need to make sure the movement I mentioned before pertains to individuals.
You wouldn’t want to mix the actions of one with the speech of another. It can be confusing to the reader.
Using the example above, you wouldn’t write something like this:
“I don’t think that’s appropriate,” he said. The woman picked up her glass of wine from the table.
“Why, because it tastes good?” she said taking a sip from her glass. He picked the tongs up from near the barbecue pit.
“No, because it’s a cat,” he replied, flipping the half-cooked piece of meat on the grill.
Can you see the difference? He and She had actions within a single line of dialogue. It’s better to separate the characters’ actions according to their own lines of conversation.
As I pointed out earlier, though, try not to overdo the description of actions.
6. Balancing the Pacing
I mentioned pacing a bit earlier and how descriptions slow the story. Dialogue often speeds it up for the reader. The trick is to create a balance so that it’s not too fast but doesn’t feel like a drawn-out conversation.
Unless you purposely want a long pause to accentuate a scene, try to keep descriptions down to one to three sentences sporadically throughout the dialogue. You want to show movement, but not too much that it feels like a slow read.
You also want to take into consideration the reading level of your target audience. Longer words are more difficult to read, which can also slow the pacing and throw off the balance. That is unless you’re purposely writing for the advanced reader.
Shorter and more concise words, however, allow everyone to enjoy the book regardless of education level. But there’s nothing wrong with throwing in an educated character amidst the average Joe.
7. Read it Out Loud
Perhaps one of the best tips I can provide for writing good dialogue would be to read your text out loud.
Reading aloud makes your brain process information differently and helps you find grammatical mistakes. It can also let you hear how the speech will sound in the real world.
If something sounds cringey while I’m reading it out loud, it gets immediately rewritten.
Sometimes, I’ll go so far as to act out each character’s part as if I am recording an audiobook or acting in a movie. It goes a long way to help you envision how the scene plays out while tightening your speech for realism.
Using AutoCrit to Compare Dialogue
Recently, I started using AutoCrit to help me edit my manuscripts. It’s a bit spendy compared to other online services, but it has a lot of tools and reports available. One of them is dialogue.
According to AutoCrit’s AI, my dialogue is on par with Stephen King. I’m a bit of a dork and love to see how I stack up against others.
Sentence percentage, dialogue tag use, and dialogue adverbs are well within the norm for a bestselling book. Of course, all this means is that my structure is good for the manuscript.
You can follow all the rules of structuring a “good” book and still write a poor story.
Anyway, tools like AutoCrit can help guide you to create a better flow for your book. However, don’t make changes simply to meet what the AI determines to be ideal.
Syntax, personality, and style all play a part in why someone wants to read a book written specifically by you. These automated tools may offer some great bits of knowledge, but it is still up to you to write a good story.
Are You Writing Good Dialogue?
A well-written story is often driven by well-written dialogue. And making sure it has a realistic tone and flow can make a massive difference in how well the book comes together.
Out of all of the things I’ve listed above, perhaps the most impactful for me has been reading it out loud. It works wonders to help clarify whether the conversation is stagnant or fresh.
In any case, do what you can to make the reader connect with the story through dialogue. Conversations between characters can ultimately impact the success of your novel.
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