A fictional dialogue is not a conversation. Even if it is supposed to suggest that characters are talking to each other, they don't really do that. The action is driven forward in dialogues, characters reveal something about themselves, conflicts are stoked, information is conveyed to the reader ... So a lot happens. In order for the reader to receive this benevolently, it is helpful to take a closer look at the craft of dialogue writing and Best Resume Writing Services .
Here are my favorite tips:
1. A dialogue is not a conversation
You can learn a lot from everyday life while writing. This also applies to dialogues - because in this way you can find out which people are currently talking and how, what terms are typical, what they do during a conversation, etc. The fact that conversations cannot be converted 1: 1 into fictitious dialogues should be one thing also always be aware.
I learned a lot about the characteristics of real conversations and the design of dialogues from the author Tina Pruschmann in great workshops.
Typical for everyday conversations is / are:
Interrupting each other, reacting to keywords, not answering questions exactly and changing topics because you want to talk yourself
bad listening
Empty phrases because we want to meet social expectations
Repetitions
Filler words
Dialogues, on the other hand, should contain fewer filler words and hardly any repetitions or empty phrases. Overall, it is good if they are constructed more tightly and include a subtext. Of course, characters don't always have to finish speaking and follow topics consistently to the end, but for the reader there must be added value from the conversation. So: Which dialog line has no function is thrown out.
After a good dialogue, something in the text is different - as with any meaningful scene.
2. Know the basics of communication
What do the two have to say to each other in the photo? Actually not the decisive question, but rather: How will what has been said will be received by the other person?
A standard model in communication research are the four sides of a message from Friedemann Schulz von Thun.
Self-disclosure (disclosure of the sender)
Factual level
Relationship level
Appeal level (expectation of the recipient)
Everyone associates something with what they say. It can be pure information, a request (which is not formulated as a request, but as a question or statement), something about yourself or your relationship with the other. The classic example of this is a couple in the car at the traffic light and the note: “It's green.” Pure information, the request to drive off, the self-assessment 'I have everything in view' or the relationship information 'I will take care of you' - all four sides resonate to different degrees and can be heard in different ways. Of course, completely different things can also be heard, for example, on the relationship level, 'you won't get anything on your own'.
For your own writing the question is important: At which level do my characters mainly speak or hear? Sensitive figures like to hear only the relationship level, extroverts use self-disclosure by showing their knowledge, "flat" or communicative figures hide the relationship level or consciously let others run into the void.
Conflicts can arise if the speaking and hearing characters weight the news sites differently. And exciting figure breaks can be developed - for example, if someone communicates on a different level than the social role demands.
3. Find individual speaker characteristics
Figures should be distinctive. This applies to their character traits, to their appearance, to their role in the story and their development. Her little quirks make her adorable - both the radiant heroine, who looks a bit more realistic as a result, as well as the sly villain, who is also a little human.
Characteristic language features also contribute to individuality. These can be typical expressions or linguistic quirks. Important: don't overdo it! Whole scenes in dialect or with incorrect grammar tire reading. Really only use individuality as a marker.
Appropriate speaker characteristics can be found through age, education, regional and social origin, choice of profession, etc. Many people use certain sentences over and over again - such concise repetitions can be easily eavesdropped in everyday life. For example, some people always twist proverbs, the guy in the midlife crisis may be pissed off with youthful language, whoever reads a lot probably has a large vocabulary, a craftswoman uses different terms than a veterinarian, which TV series you grew up with determines which Sayings are quoted ...
Nice side effect: When characters speak individually, there is no need for excessive speech introductions to make it clear who is speaking.
4. Select speech introductions carefully
Inquit formulas are a constant controversy. Ultimately, it is a matter of taste whether the characters only “say, ask and answer” something or whether they also “moan and whisper” or even “nod and laugh” sentences. However, the taste of the reader decides whether a text is well received and not their own - so think carefully about which speech introductions you want to use and Hire the best Resume writers.
I am clearly a fan of short, classic speech introductions. In my opinion, you can't "laugh" at anything spoken. You can only laugh while speaking. However, I would also be cautious about this, because you quickly end up with adjectives and / or adverbs - another irritating topic. It is nonsense to let a character “roar loudly” something - because how should someone shout something softly? So duplications are to be avoided in any case. Whether someone says something in a creaky voice, on the other hand, is more a question of taste - that can provide information about the figure or overload the text passage.
A rule of thumb is: the more classic the text, the simpler the speech introduction! Depending on the genre, speech accompaniments are used in a more varied way - in children's books and entertainment literature such as thrillers or romance novels.
5. No "talking heads"
Talking heads - that's what Hitchcock called a pure exchange of blows between characters, which you have to follow when talking like a tennis game. Instead, as in real life when talking, the characters should also do something: let their facial expressions and body language play, move (in space), do things, etc. This is especially true when one character has a higher proportion of the speech than the other (s) involved (n). Because monologues are not only difficult to endure in real life ...
As with everything, it is important to find a reasonable level. Characters who have a drink after each sentence, open and close the window, move the candle on the table and raise their eyebrows or shoulders get on your nerves just as much as long monologues or ping-pong dialogues.
6. Consciously use information
When people are talking, they are not telling each other things they already know. You should also keep this in mind when writing dialogues. Alarm signals are formulations like
… as you know …
… as I said …
... but ... ("The cake is for Grandma.")
... yes ... ("Inge has opened the practice.")
These words can be easily found using the search function of the writing program. In this way you will quickly come across places with information that are actually aimed at the readers and should be accommodated in the dialogue.
Of course, the communication of information can be a function of dialogues. But then please do it more skillfully. A typical possibility is for a character to talk to an expert. In this way, knowledge can be conveyed organically in a conversation. Or a character is annoyed because he has to keep repeating things to another character. Or …
7. Avoid duplication of content and descriptions
“When did you actually want to show me the letter? I'm so angry with you! ", Hanno drooled at her with an angry red head and threw the letter at her feet.
Not a brilliant example, but it shows what I'm getting at. Most of the time, when a character is flushed with anger, they are angry. If someone screams, too. Most of the time, when someone says they are angry, they are also aroused, so they speak out loud. We find out that it is about a letter in the verbatim speech as well as in the narrative passage. This text passage can therefore be streamlined very well.
Finding such blunders in your own text is not that easy. The only thing that helps is: carefully check all dialogues and their surroundings again. Asks a character if another would like to have a drink and holds out the teapot to ask? Does one character say that they are so excited about the upcoming concert and are wildly waving their tickets in front of another character's nose? Then I would always go back to these lines.
8. Weigh the relationship between dialogues and narrative passages
Dialogues are the icing on the cake. In a seminar, a publisher's editor once said that he first leafed through manuscripts and, if there was no dialogue on the first three pages, immediately sorted them out. Of course, it doesn't always have to be that way. But it is still a good tip to scroll through your own text and see where narrative passages might get too long or where characters only talk to each other for pages. As with all technical issues, a healthy dose is also important here.
Group conversations, in particular, shouldn't be too long because they can be exhausting to read. Of course, you can use individual language features and speech introductions to create clarity as to who is saying what, but readers still have to follow such passages very carefully so as not to lose track.
9. Observe the formal design rules
In manuscripts it is common to start a new line whenever another character speaks. That creates an overview.
And this is how the correct design of dialogues with quotation marks and commas works:
"I'll come with you," said Nina.
Erin said: "It's all getting too much for me."
"Wait!" Anuk shouted.
"What are you doing?" Asked Edward.
"Do you know", Holger pulled a narrow volume from the shelf, "already the new edition?"
“Do you know them?” Holger pulled a narrow ribbon from the shelf and and Resume Writing World. "This is the new edition."
10. Learn more about dialogue writing
Read plays or watch sitcoms - you'll learn a lot about how conversational stories work. Many writing guides have chapters on dialog writing . Otherwise you will find many more tips on the Internet .