A Little Chat

     Dialogue is a very important part of any relationship. And isn’t writing the art of building a relationship with others? By that logic, if your dialogue falls flat, you won’t keep many relationships. There’s a good chance that I’m making more out of it than it is too.

      People like characters they can relate to. If a character has no personality or a really awkward way of speaking, people won’t connect. There’s even a good chance that you won’t enjoy the way your characters came out. Different recipes are needed to make different types of characters. Put in too much sugar on a villain and he’ll break out of the mold. He’ll be unrecognizable. Make a teenage sweetheart with too much bitters and no one will be able to stomach her. It’s important that your character's dialogue matches their personality.

      Also, remember that you’re not your character! Unless you’re doing autobiographical work, your character shouldn’t sound like you. There’s no reason to have your character be a mimic. It makes the story monotonous when every character talks the same way, regardless of culture or circumstance. Think about it, if you’re from upstate New York and writing a character from the Mississippi Delta, would they really say, “Hey, mac, how’s it doin’?” It just makes for surreal characters. Take note of regional colloquialisms, things certain demographics say, how women and men think differently, and other such nuances.

     The easiest way to solidify your dialogue is to speak with people who represent the types of characters you want to write about. This makes sense, right? The more people you talk to, the more different, distinct personalities and mannerisms you will be able to utilize. It’s similar to how visual artists use reference when composing their pieces. It’s also like how musicians utilize exotic scales to get more worldly sounds. The concept is simple: speak to people, get to know them, and then use people like them in your work.

      Something I notice with a lot of new writers is a tendency to use overcomplicated dialogue. Don’t do this! No one says, “Paradoxically, the intrinsic value is equivalent to the extrinsic nature of the tangible good in question,” when talking about buying a bag of fruit. It’s too analytical and wordy. Save it for the inner monologue or the classroom. Of course, there are always exceptions. If you’re trying to make a character seem pompous, it may be within your best interest to make them speak in a pretentious way. However, exercise caution when doing this. If the speaker annoys you, it’ll probably annoy the reader too.