Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction (Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing)

by Jack R. Hart

Magazine and book writers, as a rule, are more willing to step out with a strong personal voice and an authoritative narrative style, which often gets them away from quoting directly. But that doesn’t mean they use dialogue instead. Much magazine and book content is purely expository, summary narrative that tells you how to find a fishing hole or prune a pear tree. Other than the author’s, it often contains no human voices whatsoever. That’s fine. If my pear tree’s looking gnarly and a master gardener wants to tell me about pruning, I’ll pay close attention to his voice alone. But if you want to tell a true story, your readers should hear your characters talk to one another.