Rant: I finally figured out why my dialogue always fell flat

I used to write dialogue scenes where everyone talked the same way, all proper and polished. Then last week I read back a scene where two characters were arguing and they both used the same exact words like 'indeed' and 'nevertheless.' It hit me that real people stutter, trail off, and interrupt each other. My buddy Sam pointed out that his grandma never says 'I am going to the store,' she just says 'Goin store.' After that I started listening to actual conversations at a diner and writing down the broken sentences. Has anyone else caught themselves making all their characters sound like they're giving a speech?

2 comments

2 Comments

felix_hayes6423d ago

Watched my buddy Dave try to write a fight scene between two brothers last month. He had them using full sentences like "I do not appreciate your tone" and "That is a very hurtful thing to say." I told him to go listen to his own kids argue over who gets the last pop tart. He came back and rewrote the whole thing with one kid screaming "MOM HE TOOK IT" while the other one just kept saying "Did not" over and over again.

the_paul23d ago

Did you actually go sit at a diner or did you just start paying attention differently in line at the grocery store? Asking cause I tried eavesdropping at Starbucks once and everyone was just on their phones.