Strategies for Writing Dialogue that Won’t Bore Readers
I’ve been thinking lately about how so many of the books I’ve read in the recent months have what I call “uninspired dialogue.” That is to say, the dialogue is boring and doesn’t add anything to the story.
Example 1:
Scenario: One character calls another, or the characters meet for coffee or a meal.
“Hi, how have you been?”
“I’ve been okay.”
“You come from work?”
“Yeah. You?”
How to fix it: Say “we exchanged pleasantries” then move on to the meat of the conversation. Dialogue should always be interesting. It should add something to the story. If it’s a good argument or suspenseful scene, it can cause conflict, drama and tension. Conversations like the above example add nothing.
Conversely, at the end of the conversation say, “we said our goodbyes” to avoid needless lines of dialogue.
Another form of uninspired dialogue is when one character relates to another character events we, the reader, read previously in the story. These recaps usually occur when one character is seeking advice from a friend or sibling, but they are unnecessary. Readers were there when the action happened. Instead, say something such as “I told her everything that happened.” This achieves the same purpose. One character is still sharing information with another, but readers don’t need to be bored reading the synopsis of a scene they just read.
Avoid huge chunks of dialogue that serve no other purpose other than to tell readers information a character already knows. For example, I read a story where a woman had moved back into town and was meeting her best friend for the first time since the move. The friends spoke frequently on the phone prior to the main character’s move, yet she was telling her friend about her children, why she decided to move and her ex-husband. It was obvious the author thought it was better to share the information via dialogue as opposed to narrative, but it was the wrong move. If the friends truly spoke as often as claimed, her best friend would already know all of it.
A Word on Dialogue Tags
Also, while we’re on the topic of writing dialogue, enough with the dialogue tags. They make me want to throw my Kindle across the room. Dialogue tags should be subtle, guiding the story, not bogging it down. Improper use of tags makes an author seem amateurish.
Most tags are redundant. Some examples:
Redundant: he/she/they yelled
Example: “I told you do not to do that,” he yelled.
Why it’s redundant: An exclamation point infers excitement or a raised voice. Tone and context clues regarding the conversation can as well.
Fix: He pounded his fist on the table. “I told you do not to do that!”
Redundant: he/she/they asked
Example: “Why did you do that?” he asked.
Why it’s redundant: If a character is asking a question, you don’t need to tell me. I already know the character is asking a question.
Fix: He glared at me. “Why did you do that?”
Redundant: he/she/they replied
Example: “I thought it was for the best,” she replied.
Why it’s redundant: If a character is answering a question, you don’t need to tell me. I already know the character is answering a question.
Fix: She hung her head, cheeks flushing. “I thought it was for the best.”
You don’t need tags for every line, and you certainly don’t need to use every synonym and adverb under the sun. Nix all the variety. The story will be better for it.
You do, however, need to make clear who is speaking:
Two (or more) characters’ lines of dialogue should never share the same paragraph.
If there is a large chunk of narrative between two speakers, you need to ensure the reader knows which character is speaking after the narrative break.
Finally, if you’re using spit/spat, the character better literally be spitting because that’s what you’re saying.
Adding dialogue tags doesn’t make boring dialogue more interesting. Work on writing dialogue and worry about the tags later. You may learn that by writing snappy dialogue and framing it correctly that you don’t need the tags.