Writing Good Dialogue

The question comes up about when to use dialogue instead of describing something in a novel. That can be a tough choice, but let your instincts guide you. Occasionally, a description works better, while sometimes the words spoken by characters convey a great deal more than a long-winded description.

Good dialogue can be difficult for many writers. The novelist Diana Chang once told me, "Dialogue isn't just what people say to each other; it's what they do to each other with words."

That's very true. Every word uttered by characters in a novel should--in some way, large or small--impact the story, or clarify the character saying those words. Or, dialogue should shed light on the relationship between characters.

Every word or sentence must connote action (past, present, or future) relating to the story so it has the buzz of drama.

To keep dialogue realistic-sounding, I find it helpful to read it aloud, as though I'm acting out a play or movie. You might be surprised how hearing the words can help you sense whether or not dialogue is authentic-sounding, or sounds stilted and not true to life.

Speaking of hearing dialogue, I find watching movies very helpful in giving me a sense about dialogue. Of course, in a movie, the action, music and the actor's body language add to the dialogue's drama.

But when your audience is a reader, he or she supplies all the accessories through imagination. And there's nothing more powerful than that.