Using Dialogue



This was one of the panels at the PSWA conference.

Moderator: Mike Black

Participants: Frank Hickey, Thonie Hevron, Ilene Schneider, Janet Greger, Barbara Hodges

Set the tone in dialogue

Eavesdrop to see how people talk

Try to put as much of the story into dialogue as possible.Give your characters tics and tells.

Use a light touch with dialects

Read the dialogue out loud

Must move the plot forward or reveal character

Leave out the mundane things we say.

(They talked about setting too, but I didn't take any notes on it. Have no idea why, possibly because someone was talking to me about something.)

Marilyn

P.S. There also was a panel on point-of-view which I've discussed several times on this blog.

Another topic was working with an editor and here's a few tips from that one:

Everyone needs an editor. 

Belong to a critique group and use a content editor.

An editor can make you a better writer.

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