Rules for adding dialogue “Dialogue” Revisions Rules for adding dialogue

Why Dialogue? Dialogue is what keeps the story interesting and moving quickly for the reader. Think about your History book, your Science book, your Math book…no dialogue. Reading chapters in those books can be difficult because they are dense, full of facts and details. Dialogue gives the brain a break. It is as if you are listening in on a private conversation. It is a MUST in a good short story. HOWEVER…It MUST be done well for it to be effective. Look at the following rules before you add dialogue to your own story.

Rule #1: The absolute dialogue writing rule The Pesky Quotation mark Quotation marks are a must! Quotation marks indicate what is spoken and what is not. It is used to guide the reader in the story. Learn to do it correctly or your grammatical mistakes will irritate and distract your reader.

Rule #2 Location, Location, Location a.k.a. Dialogue with a purppose Don’t put dialogue just for the sake of having your characters talk. Characters need to have a REASON to speak. Dialogue is used to MOVE the plot along and REVEAL the characters. It should be a substitute for narration. Never use dialogue and narration to tell the reader the same thing. It should also reveal the character’s intention in the story and set the tone. Ask yourself…Does my dialogue (or will my dialogue) serve one of the above purposes? If the answer is “yes”, then you know that you are using it correctly.

Rule #3 Can I see your i.d., please? Make sure the reader knows who is speaking at all times. Each speaker needs to be given a new paragraph. This rule, like quotation marks, must be followed to the letter! Even if the new speaker only says one word! A good writer will not only identify the speaker, but they will also describe the speaker’s reactions or actions while speaking the words.

Rule #4 excuse me, your tag is sticking out… A speech tag is the “he said” or “she said” part of the quote. Many writers tend to always use them at the end of the sentences. This will get boring after a while. A good writer will vary the use of the speech tag by 1. placing them in different parts of the sentence. AND/OR 2. alternating the tag word from “said” to a more descriptive word.

Rule #4 um…Like…um Always keep in mind that good written dialogue should mimic actual speech that one hears around them. “Um” and “Like” are two words that one commonly hears in a spoken dialogue. Using them in dialogue will lend an air of reality .