Helen Rich's Blog, page 3
August 2, 2012
Dialogue Commandments
Dialogue should . . .
Increase the pace. It should provide new information quickly.
Create a sense of immediacy and reality. It should make readers feel as if they’re in the scene.
Propel the story. It should increase conflict, add information, tell a lie, or expose a secret or challenging truth.
Add conflict and tension.
Condense backstory.
Impart humor.
Reveal a character’s core traits and perspective.
If your dialogue doesn’t accomplish these tasks, delete it. If it accomplishes only two of these tasks, revise it.
Dialogue should not . . .
Tell characters what they already know. “As you know, Joe . . .” is an artificial approach to revealing information. If you wouldn’t say it to your friend in a real conversation, neither would your character to her friend.
Be pointless chatter. Don’t try to add realism by injecting chitchat about the weather or other frivolous topics.
Dump information. Don’t use dialogue to drop exposition on the reader.
Use character’s names frequently. “What are you doing here, Lucy?” “Mary, I needed to pick up some bagels.” “Oh, Lucy, the bagels here are the best.” Delete all those superfluous names.
Always convey exactly what each character is thinking. Instead, it should often merely hint at what each character means. Good dialogue circles around the truth and also conceals it.
Give speeches that thinly disguise your own views. Don’t intrude on your character’s point of view. Only preachers and politicians, if anyone, should be giving speeches in your book.
Contain adverb-laden tags. If a dialogue tag is needed for clarity, stick to “he said” and “she said.” Cut the “angrily,” “morosely,” and other adverbs. The dialogue itself should convey how it’s spoken.
Now go forth and write good dialogue.
Resource: Thanks, but This Isn’t for Us by Jessica Page Morrell
Increase the pace. It should provide new information quickly.
Create a sense of immediacy and reality. It should make readers feel as if they’re in the scene.
Propel the story. It should increase conflict, add information, tell a lie, or expose a secret or challenging truth.
Add conflict and tension.
Condense backstory.
Impart humor.
Reveal a character’s core traits and perspective.
If your dialogue doesn’t accomplish these tasks, delete it. If it accomplishes only two of these tasks, revise it.
Dialogue should not . . .
Tell characters what they already know. “As you know, Joe . . .” is an artificial approach to revealing information. If you wouldn’t say it to your friend in a real conversation, neither would your character to her friend.
Be pointless chatter. Don’t try to add realism by injecting chitchat about the weather or other frivolous topics.
Dump information. Don’t use dialogue to drop exposition on the reader.
Use character’s names frequently. “What are you doing here, Lucy?” “Mary, I needed to pick up some bagels.” “Oh, Lucy, the bagels here are the best.” Delete all those superfluous names.
Always convey exactly what each character is thinking. Instead, it should often merely hint at what each character means. Good dialogue circles around the truth and also conceals it.
Give speeches that thinly disguise your own views. Don’t intrude on your character’s point of view. Only preachers and politicians, if anyone, should be giving speeches in your book.
Contain adverb-laden tags. If a dialogue tag is needed for clarity, stick to “he said” and “she said.” Cut the “angrily,” “morosely,” and other adverbs. The dialogue itself should convey how it’s spoken.
Now go forth and write good dialogue.
Resource: Thanks, but This Isn’t for Us by Jessica Page Morrell
July 5, 2012
Spice it Up!
Adding Variety to Your Writing
They say variety is the spice of life. Apply this basic concept to your prose, and you’ll give readers a thrill.
When words or phrases are overused, they lose their zing and weaken writing. Some palate offenders we see frequently are as follows:
just
toward
so
then
now
that
as
down
up
back
If these words add nothing to the meaning of your text—or worse, if they muddle it—throw them out.
Especially watch for repeated words within a sentence or a paragraph. Try reading your piece aloud; your ear will catch repetitions you might have otherwise missed. Or look for available software programs (some even for free) that spot clichés and overused words for you.
Now mix it up, find new ways to describe things, use stronger verbs, and get friendly with your thesaurus.
Finally, reread your work. Bam! Isn’t it much tastier now?
They say variety is the spice of life. Apply this basic concept to your prose, and you’ll give readers a thrill.
When words or phrases are overused, they lose their zing and weaken writing. Some palate offenders we see frequently are as follows:
just
toward
so
then
now
that
as
down
up
back
If these words add nothing to the meaning of your text—or worse, if they muddle it—throw them out.
Especially watch for repeated words within a sentence or a paragraph. Try reading your piece aloud; your ear will catch repetitions you might have otherwise missed. Or look for available software programs (some even for free) that spot clichés and overused words for you.
Now mix it up, find new ways to describe things, use stronger verbs, and get friendly with your thesaurus.
Finally, reread your work. Bam! Isn’t it much tastier now?
May 31, 2012
Checklist for Dynamic Endings
You’ve spent months (if not years) writing and polishing your novel only to realize that the ending doesn’t quite work. If you’re not sure what’s wrong, hopefully the following questions will help you pinpoint it.
Does the ending feel rushed? Did you wrap up everything too quickly?
Is it believable?
Are there any loose ends that should be tied up or characters that should be mentioned?
Is it too predictable?
Do the characters behave how you would expect, or do they act in ways that are inauthentic?
Is there too much telling? Does the reader experience the ending with the protagonist, or is the reader told what happened?
Does it seem clichéd? For instance, does the antagonist confess everything, including his motives, to the protagonist in a long monologue?
Remember, the time you invest in revisions will be well worth it. A dynamic ending is unforgettable, and it will leave readers clamoring for your next book.
Does the ending feel rushed? Did you wrap up everything too quickly?
Is it believable?
Are there any loose ends that should be tied up or characters that should be mentioned?
Is it too predictable?
Do the characters behave how you would expect, or do they act in ways that are inauthentic?
Is there too much telling? Does the reader experience the ending with the protagonist, or is the reader told what happened?
Does it seem clichéd? For instance, does the antagonist confess everything, including his motives, to the protagonist in a long monologue?
Remember, the time you invest in revisions will be well worth it. A dynamic ending is unforgettable, and it will leave readers clamoring for your next book.
May 1, 2012
Bringing Characters to Life
In real life, we get to know people slowly through interactions and observations. While reading books, we savor the experience of getting to know characters as they respond to challenges over time.
When you’re brainstorming before writing your novel, you can summarize, analyze, and define your characters. You can also write journal entries in each character’s voice to get to know them well.
In the novel itself, avoid summarizing, analyzing, or defining characters. Instead, give us enough description to picture each one; then put them in action. Provide clues about them through behaviors, dialogue, and setting. If your main character flips off other drivers on the freeway, yells at the cashier, and there’s an alarm clock–shaped dent in her bedroom wall, we’ll know she has an anger management problem.
Show us crucial details and quirks gradually, and disclose only as much of a character’s backstory as we need at any given time. Your main character should face increasingly difficult challenges and have diverse emotional relationships that reveal her complexity. Use every detail to bring your characters to life.
When you’re brainstorming before writing your novel, you can summarize, analyze, and define your characters. You can also write journal entries in each character’s voice to get to know them well.
In the novel itself, avoid summarizing, analyzing, or defining characters. Instead, give us enough description to picture each one; then put them in action. Provide clues about them through behaviors, dialogue, and setting. If your main character flips off other drivers on the freeway, yells at the cashier, and there’s an alarm clock–shaped dent in her bedroom wall, we’ll know she has an anger management problem.
Show us crucial details and quirks gradually, and disclose only as much of a character’s backstory as we need at any given time. Your main character should face increasingly difficult challenges and have diverse emotional relationships that reveal her complexity. Use every detail to bring your characters to life.
March 26, 2012
Five Tips for Writing Dialogue
1. Make it realistic but not too realistic.
Dialogue needs to ring true, but completely realistic dialogue can be trying to read, so avoid most of the pauses, repetitive lines, sentences trailing off, rambling, wordiness, and interruptions. Be sure to use contractions so it doesn’t sound stilted.
In this example, a wordy line is pared down.
“I am going to have to go to the store later today.”
Better: “I have to go to the store.”
2. Use the speaker tag “said” and use it without adverbs.
Not everyone agrees with this guideline, but author Elmore Leonard is a firm believer. He says, “The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in. But ‘said’ is far less intrusive than ‘grumbled,’ ‘gasped,’ ‘cautioned,’ ‘lied.’”
And: “To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange.”
3. Avoid mentioning characters’ names.
Repeating characters’ names in dialogue sounds unnatural because most people don’t continually say the name of the person they’re talking to, especially when there are only two people conversing.
Take this example.
“Catherine, what did you find at the antique store?” Ruth said.
“An old typewriter,” Catherine said. “Do you type, Ruth?”
“Yes, I do, Catherine.”
4. Eliminate redundancies.
Though redundancies might be realistic at times, they tend to slow down the dialogue.
In the first example, the character states the same thing twice. In the last two examples, the dialogue in combination with the speaker tag/action is redundant.
“I’m not feeling well,” she said. “I’m sick.”
“Sorry,” he apologized.
She nodded. “Yes.”
5. Use actions sparingly.
Some writers fall into the trap of inserting actions into nearly every paragraph of dialogue. This results in characters who can’t seem to sit still because they’re constantly nodding, crossing their arms, pointing, shaking their heads, rolling their eyes, and shrugging.
Hope these tips help make your dialogue shine.
—The Editors
Reference
Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing (New York, NY; HarperCollins, 2001), 23, 29.
Dialogue needs to ring true, but completely realistic dialogue can be trying to read, so avoid most of the pauses, repetitive lines, sentences trailing off, rambling, wordiness, and interruptions. Be sure to use contractions so it doesn’t sound stilted.
In this example, a wordy line is pared down.
“I am going to have to go to the store later today.”
Better: “I have to go to the store.”
2. Use the speaker tag “said” and use it without adverbs.
Not everyone agrees with this guideline, but author Elmore Leonard is a firm believer. He says, “The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in. But ‘said’ is far less intrusive than ‘grumbled,’ ‘gasped,’ ‘cautioned,’ ‘lied.’”
And: “To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange.”
3. Avoid mentioning characters’ names.
Repeating characters’ names in dialogue sounds unnatural because most people don’t continually say the name of the person they’re talking to, especially when there are only two people conversing.
Take this example.
“Catherine, what did you find at the antique store?” Ruth said.
“An old typewriter,” Catherine said. “Do you type, Ruth?”
“Yes, I do, Catherine.”
4. Eliminate redundancies.
Though redundancies might be realistic at times, they tend to slow down the dialogue.
In the first example, the character states the same thing twice. In the last two examples, the dialogue in combination with the speaker tag/action is redundant.
“I’m not feeling well,” she said. “I’m sick.”
“Sorry,” he apologized.
She nodded. “Yes.”
5. Use actions sparingly.
Some writers fall into the trap of inserting actions into nearly every paragraph of dialogue. This results in characters who can’t seem to sit still because they’re constantly nodding, crossing their arms, pointing, shaking their heads, rolling their eyes, and shrugging.
Hope these tips help make your dialogue shine.
—The Editors
Reference
Elmore Leonard, Elmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing (New York, NY; HarperCollins, 2001), 23, 29.
