Top 7 Secrets to Write Dialogue Like a Pro

Crafting believable dialogue is one of the most important skills for fiction writers to master. The conversations between your characters reveal so much about their personalities, motivations, and relationships. They advance the plot and pace of your story. With so much riding on your dialogue, it’s crucial to get it right. Follow these top 7 expert tips to write dialogue like a seasoned pro:

Secret #1 – Listen up!

A huge part of writing authentic dialogue is listening – and not just to how people around you actually talk. Make sure you’re tuned in to the cadence, dialects, idioms, and pet phrases that are unique to your characters. Pay extra close attention to interesting figures of speech you hear in day-to-day life. You can use these conversational tidbits later to bring your fictional dialogue to life.

Secret #2 – Get real with punctuation

Don’t rely too heavily on dialogue tags like “she said” or “he asked.” Use punctuation instead to indicate pace, emotion, and tone. Short sentences and fragments joined by commas suggest a rapid-fire conversation. Periods indicate pensive pauses. Exclamation points convey excitement. Ask yourself, if this dialogue was read aloud, how would it sound? Let punctuation be your guide.

Secret #3 – Avoid small talk

Keep dialogue focused and purposeful by avoiding mundane chatter. Fill any necessary time gaps in the conversation with descriptive narration instead. Everything said between characters should reveal something important. Does it illuminate a relationship? Move the plot forward? Hint at a conflict to come? If not, consider cutting it.

Secret #4 – Act it out

After finishing a dialogue-heavy scene, read it aloud and act it out. Get on your feet to envision how the characters would really move and speak. You’ll start to hear moments that ring false or feel awkward once performed. Tweak these lines to make them more natural.

Secret #5 – Mine your characters’ voices

Give each main character a distinctive way of speaking. Do they use a lot of witty banter? Folksy aphorisms? Technical jargon? Create a lexicon of terms, phrases, and slang unique to each one. Their word choices and speaking styles should reflect their backgrounds, education levels, personalities, and quirks.

Secret #6 – Subtext is key

The most interesting dialogue often has an unspoken element. It’s what your characters aren’t saying outright but are subtly communicating through body language and careful phrasing. Layer in emotional subtext to build tension and intimacy. Two characters saying “I’m fine” can convey very different underlying meanings.

Secret #7 – Read your dialogue out loud

You might think a line sounds great in your head, but finds it feels wordy and unnatural when spoken out loud. As a final polish, have a friend read your finished dialogue sections aloud to catch any last rough patches. Ask them to read organically, with proper emotion, so you can ensure it flows smoothly.

With a balance of artful technique and thoughtful editing, your story’s dialogue will leap off the page. Listen closely to the world around you. Craft unique character voices. Remember that pacing, subtext and conflict drive interesting conversations. Use these top secrets from the pros to make your dialogue sparkle and shine. Your readers will find themselves hanging on your characters’ every word.

Now you have the inside scoop on expert dialogue writing. Ready to put these pointers into practice? Get going on your next fictional conversation masterpiece. Listen, punctuate, trim, act, characterize, imply and speak your dialogue out loud. Before you know it, you’ll be writing dialogue with the skill of an acclaimed novelist. Your characters are waiting to start talking – let’s get to work!