How to Write Better Dialogue, Rule One.
Read the Dialogue Aloud.
One of the primary aims of a good writer is to make the dialogue realistic: effective dialogue will be an accurate portrayal of how people talk. The most effective way to ensure this accuracy is to read the dialogue out loud. If the dialogue is easy to read out loud, and flows like a genuine conversation, then it is doing it's job. If, on the other hand, it is clunky and hard to read without stumbling over, then it needs to be re-worked.
How to Write Better Dialogue Rule Two.
No Exposition!
Observe the below exchange:
'What makes you think she is having an affair?'
'Well, do you remember the holiday we, you and your wife Sarah went on to Scarborough in seventy six? The one where you and Janey had been having marital difficulties? The one just after you had solved the Kutner case?'
Now, it may be the readers needs to know about the first character's marital difficulties, or the fact that he solved this Kutner case, but this is the worst possible way of telling them. The second speaker has no need to relate all this information to the first speaker (information he is already aware of). Adam would know which holiday James was relating to, so the sole purpose of this elboration is to make the reader aware of these facts. This is to be avoided, as it makes for appalling dialogue: people simply do not speak this way.
How to Write Better Dialogue, Rule Three:
Avoid the word 'Said'.
When writing a press release, which will contain one or two extracts of speech, using the word said to define who has spoken is appropriate, and indeed expected. In a hundred thousand word novel, however, the use of 'James said' before or after every piece of speech will drive the reader slowly insane.
This isn't to say that a writer should spend valuable writing time coming up with a thousand substitutes for the word 'said'. A novel full of characters sighing, gasping, spitting and ejaculating their words will irritate everyone outside of the Booker prize nomination board.
Good dialogue should be able to stand on it's own: it is perfectly acceptable for dialogue within fiction to run in the following format:
'Do you deny that you were there?'
'Couldn't have been'
'And why is that?'
'Was out'
'And where were you?'
'With mates'.
From the two above voices, it isn't hard to tell which voice belongs to the Oxford educated Detective Inspector Endeavour, and which comes grumbling from the surly teenager Darren Martin. This is solely down to the difference uses of grammar and dialect the two would use, and renders excessive use of 'so-and-so said' useless, allowing for smoother, more professional writing.
How to Write Better Dialogue, Rule Four.
One of a writer's defining tools in writing better dialogue is to listen to how people talk.
It is essential for a good writer to take the headphones out of their Ipod, and listen to everyday people having everyday conversations. Whether it is an old lady talking to the cashier at the local supermarket, or the angry young man wazing lyrical about how late the bus is, every person in the world who is talking is offering a free lesson in accurate dialogue.
A good way to enhance this is to focus on one person's speech in a conversation. Does the person have a stammer? Maybe they attach 'yeah' to every other sentence. Either way, little conversation quirks like these are what makes dialogue accurate and lifelike.
How to Write Better Dialogue, Rule Five:
It is important for a writer to maintain consistency when writing their dialogue, especially in terms of a character's individual voice: a reader must be able to recognise a character from their speech, and because of this, the way a particular character talks cannot change mid-way through a story.
A character's own personal development in terms of their journey is essential to any good story, of course, however this should not be portrayed through his dialogue. If, for instance, Detective Endeavour feels far more compassion for the working classes by the end of the novel, that that's fine. If, though, his Queen's English suddenly gives way to London rhyming slang, the novel will be rendered ridiculous, due to the complete inaccurate portrayal of how real people develop.
A Writer's Skills Are Enhanced by Practising.
This is the case with all skills in life: they will be improved by practise. It is essential for any ambitious writer to enhance their craft by setting aside time to work on their weaknesses. If a writer practises, then their skills will increase. If they do not practise, then they will not improve!
