History SoYouWantTo / WriteDialogue

This is the literary equivalent of BoldInflation, and should be avoided, because it gives the impression of the character's voice going up and down like they're a bad singer. It is typically best to ask yourself whether you need emphasis at all.

First things first: you need {{characters}}. They are the ones that will make your dialogue happen. Their [[BackStory backgrounds]], [[CharacterTropes personalities]], and {{archetype}}s will all influence how and with whom they communicate. The more you understand your characters, the better you will understand how they speak. Check out the SoYouWantTo/DevelopCharacterPersonality page to get started.

This is literary equivalent of BoldInflation, and should be avoided, because it gives the impression of the character's voice going up and down like they're a bad singer. It is typically best to ask yourself whether you need emphasis at all.

* One use for dialogue is avoiding {{infodump}}s. Don't make dialogue an infodump unless your character [[MotorMouth actually talks like that]].

--> Alice asked, "Has Bob arrived?"
--> Alice asked whether Bob had arrived.
--> Alice said, "Charlie wants to know if Bob has arrived."

--> Alice asked, "Whether Bob had arrived."

Like all things, italics are good only in moderation. Here's an example of what you shouldn't do, taken from an actual book[[note]]It's a Victorian romance, preserved partially in George Elliot's essay ''Silly novels by lady novelists'', if you're curious[[/note]]:

This is literary equivalent of BoldInflation, and should be avoided, because it gives the impression of the character's voice going up and down like they're a bad singer.

* Read your dialogue out loud. Always, always read it out loud. If it doesn't sound natural to you, it probably won't sound natural to your character. Of [[BluntMetaphorsTrauma course]], [[AlienTropes there]] [[StrangeSyntaxSpeaker are]] [[CloudCuckooLander exceptions]].

* On the flip side, don't make your dialogue resemble your narration, unless you want to SoYouWantTo/MakeTheNarratorACharacter. No two people speak exactly the same way, and your character's voices need to be distinct from your own. When your character talks, [[CaptainObvious it has to sound like]] [[ShapedLikeItself something they would actually say.]]

[[SoYouWantTo/SeeTheIndex So you want to]] write {{dialogue}}? [[RhetoricalQuestionBlunder Of course you do]]. Dialogue is an essential tool for most storytelling genres. It is one of the most important ways to [[EstablishingCharacterMoment establish]] and [[CharacterDevelopment develop]] your characters. It also lets you convey information to your audience in a manner that makes you invisible. Having a condescending KnowItAll express their distaste for the people they must explain the plot to, while the DeadpanSnarker [[LampshadeHanging points out that]] [[AsYouKnow everyone already knew that]] is much more fun than an {{infodump}} from the narrator.

Remember, you don't have to give your reader all the details, and especially not in dialogue. People will usually notice only the most notable things about something they've seen. They will also often use hand gestures and so on when talking to somebody. Compare:
->"Oh, I remember him. The guy was almost seven feet tall, with curly, black hair reaching his shoulders and small, brown eyes. There was a small dimple under his left eye, I believe, and a really freakish scar running down from the outer corner of his left eye to the nostril. He was dressed very elegantly, in a black suit from Harrods, with a small handkerchief in the pocket. He had very fine shoes, but his long, white gloves were oddly dirty," she said.\\
\\
"Oh, I remember him. The guy was freakishly tall, the tallest I've even seen in my life. Short black hair, can't remember his eyes, but he had this really freaky scar, here." She pointed to the outer corner to her left eye and ran a line to her nose. "He dressed like a rich guy, though, suit and all, but his gloves were really dirty."

If your character's sentence ends with a period, and you have something to add after that, use a comma. For example:

If that sentence ended with something other than a period, don't change it:

Notice how "said" isn't capitalized in either line in that last point? Don't capitalize "said" if it doesn't start a new sentence.

In general, it's a good idea to match your character's speaking pattern with their archetype. SesquipedalianLoquaciousness would work well for a BrainyBrunette, while an IdiotHero is more likely to engage in BuffySpeak. A GeniusDitz might wind up doing both at once. A businessman would be unlikely to {{talk like a pirate}}, unless he happens to be a {{pirate}}.

Think about who your character is and how their traits would translate to how they talk.

* Are they honest? [[BrutalHonesty Even to an off-putting extent?]] Are they [[BadLiar really bad at lying]] or [[CannotTellALie incapable of it?]] Perhaps they're [[ConsummateLiar really good at lying?]]

* On that note, pay attention to cultural differences between your characters. One word might mean very different things to them. Idioms might be lost on one character, while another uses them all the time.

* How do they handle awkward situations? Do they talk differently when they're uncomfortable? How so? If they [[OpenMouthInsertFoot puts their foot in their mouth]], do they [[ShuttingUpNow stop talking]] or [[DiggingYourselfDeeper make it worse]]?

* Be aware of the setting. Most people would not have a loud, intimate conversation during a staff meeting. Maybe your characters would. Where they are and who they are talking to will have an impact on what they're willing to say and how they are going to say it. Your audience will pay attention to that. You should, too.

* Having your character's voice fit their archetype is not bad. Having their voice fit their stereotype ''is'' bad. Don't assume that all black men talk like [[Film/RushHour Chris Tucker]] or that all computer nerds use [[LeetLingo 733T 5P34K]].

** That being said, even your OutOfCharacterMoment [[LogicBomb has to be in character]]. Your character must have some kind of internally consistent reason for acting that way, even if it doesn't look like it. Otherwise, you're risking CharacterDerailment.

!!'''Suggested Themes and Aesops'''
!!'''Potential Motifs'''

!'''Departments'''
!!'''Set Designer''' / '''Location Scout'''
!!'''Props Department'''
!!'''Costume Designer'''
!!'''Casting Director'''
!!'''Stunt Department'''

[[SoYouWantTo/SeeTheIndex So you want to]] write {{dialogue}}? [[RhetoricalQuestionBlunder Of course you do]]. Dialogue is an essential tool for most storytelling genres. It is one of the most important ways to [[EstablishingCharacterMoment establish]] and [[CharacterDevelopment develop]] your characters. It also lets you convey information to your audience in a way that makes you invisible. Having a condescending KnowItAll express his distaste for the people he has to explain the plot to, while the DeadpanSnarker [[LampshadeHanging points out that]] [[AsYouKnow everyone already knew that]] is much more fun than an {{infodump}} from the narrator.

First things first: you need {{characters}}. They are the ones that will make your dialogue happen. Their [[BackStory backgrounds]], [[CharacterTropes personalities]], and {{archetype}}s will all influence how they talk and to whom. The more you understand your characters, the better you will understand how they talk. Check out the SoYouWantTo/DevelopCharacterPersonality page to get started.

In general, it's a good idea to match your character's speaking pattern to their archetype. SesquipedalianLoquaciousness would work well for a BrainyBrunette, while an IdiotHero is more likely to engage in BuffySpeak. A GeniusDitz might wind up doing both at once. A businessman would be unlikely to {{talk like a pirate}}, unless he happens to be a {{pirate}}.

Think about who your character is and how her traits would translate to how she talks.

* How well does your character understand the language he is speaking? [[FunnyForeigner Is he new to it?]] [[GrammarNazi Does he relentlessly correct other people's grammar?]]
* What does your character find interesting? What does she find boring? She's much more likely to talk about the former than the latter.
* How often does your character talk, anyway? [[TheQuietOne Does she even talk at all?]]
* Is he honest? [[BrutalHonesty Even to an off-putting extent?]] Is he [[BadLiar really bad at lying,]] or [[CannotTellALie incapable of it?]] Maybe he's [[ConsummateLiar really good at lying?]]
* How does she [[ThatMakesMeFeelAngry talk]] [[TranquilFury when]] [[{{Angrish}} she's]] [[ForeignLanguageTirade angry?]]
* What are your character's {{verbal tic}}s? Does he have a CatchPhrase?

* Also pay attention to cultural similarities. People are more likely to hang out with people they get along with, and that's easier to do the more they have in common. Cliques tend to form for that reason.

And how do they react to other characters?

* How does he talk to people he doesn't know? Does he?
* How does she treat her friends? Her family? Her {{love interest}}?
* What about little kids? Does he treat them like adults? Boss them around? Coddle them? Avoid them?
* How about her enemies? Is she defensive? Does she avoid them? Does she [[DeadpanSnarker snark at them]] until they leave her alone? Is she aggressive or antagonistic?
* How does he handle awkward situations? Does he talk differently when he's uncomfortable? How so? If he [[OpenMouthInsertFoot puts his foot in his mouth]], does he [[ShuttingUpNow stop talking]] or [[DiggingYourselfDeeper make it worse]]?

[[folder:Literature]]

->"What's going on?" said Bob.
->"What do you mean?" said Alice.

Dialogue inside dialogue goes double quote outside, single quote inside. Like this:
->"And she was all, 'I don't get it!', and I just wanted to smack her!"

->"I don't know!" said Bob.
->"I don't know?" said Bob.

* It's okay to say "said". It's not a bad word. The tag "said" just acts as a label to explain which character spoke which line, like the tail of a {{Speech Bubble|s}}. It will be all but invisible to the audience. Meanwhile, words like orated, expressed, communicated, and ejaculated will only draw attention to themselves and make the audience think, "Why didn't they just write 'said'?"

-->"I don't know!" Bob snapped.
-->"I don't know!" Bob whined.

-->"Get to the point," Alice crossed her arms.
-->"I already told you, my name's Alice." she crossed her arms.

-->"That's okay." He put a hand on my arm to stop me.
-->"Get to the point." Alice crossed her arms.
-->"I already told you, my name's Alice." She crossed her arms.

--> Bob stepped inside to find Alice pacing in an agitated circle.
--> "What's wrong?" he said.
--> "Wrong!" Alice growled. "I don't know, Bob. Why don't you tell me!"
--> Bob gulped. "I, uh... I don't know?" he said lamely.
--> "Tch. I should've known."
--> "Well, what is it?"
--> "Here's a hint: ''your dog ruined Christmas!''"

Fanfic/MyImmortal is basically a list of everything you should never do with dialogue... or storytelling, for that matter.

In general, just make sure that what your characters say is consistent with who they are and what they do - in other words, it's gotta be in character. The EmotionlessGirl will speak differently than the ManicPixieDreamGirl. Bob's LoveInterest, Alice, will see a different side to him than his [[MyBelovedSmother overbearing mother]], Jan. Do not confuse your audience - at least, not on accident. [[MindScrew If confusion is your intent]], then go ahead - but find a way that doesn't disengage them from a story.

[[SoYouWantTo/SeeTheIndex So you want to]] write {{dialogue}}? Of course you do. Dialogue is an essential tool for most storytelling genres. It is one of the most important ways to [[EstablishingCharacterMoment establish]] and [[CharacterDevelopment develop]] your characters. It also lets you convey information to your audience in a way that makes you invisible. Having a condescending KnowItAll express his distaste for the people he has to explain the plot to, while the DeadpanSnarker [[LampshadeHanging points out that]] [[AsYouKnow everyone already knew that]] is much more fun than an {{infodump}} from the narrator.

First things first. You gotta have {{characters}}. They are the ones that will make your dialogue happen. Their [[BackStory backgrounds]], [[CharacterTropes personalities]], and {{archetype}}s will all influence how they talk and to whom. The more you understand your characters, the better you will understand how they talk. Check out the SoYouWantTo/DevelopCharacterPersonality page to get started.

Any time more than one character is speaking, you can only have one person talking in each paragraph. That's how your audience expects it to be formatted, and if you don't follow it, they'll have a harder time following your story. Examples:

Notice how I didn't capitalize "said" in that last point? Don't capitalize "said" if it doesn't start a new sentence.

* It's okay to say "said". It's not a bad word. The tag "said" just acts as a label to explain which character spoke which line. It will be all but invisible to the audience. Meanwhile, words like orated, expressed, communicated, and ejaculated will only draw attention to themselves and make the audience think, "Why didn't they just write 'said'?"

* One use for dialogue is avoiding {{infodump}}s. Please don't make dialogue an infodump. Unless your character [[MotorMouth actually talks like that]].

* Use words other than "said" - like shouted, cried, whispered, or hissed - when it adds something that wasn't already obvious from the spoken line. These two lines say different things:

--> Bob gulped. "I, uh... I don't know?" he said weakly.

* Is he honest? [[BrutalHonesty Even to an off-putting extent?]] Is he [[BadLiar really bad at lying,]] or [[CannotTellALie incapable of it?]] Maybe he's [[ConsummateLiar really good at lying.]]