- Writing Advice
- BROKEN BRANCH FALLS tidbits (titles of my posts are also chapters from BBF)
- And some laughs at the end!
A to Z Writing advice:
dialog – I love writing dialog. Character's personalities can really be shown with some good dialog. And misunderstandings can create twists with things that aren't said, too! Just watch those dialog tags - said is usually all you need and action tags are even better with no said-isms at all. Especially stay away from adverbs. You can show reactions better than a silly old adverb. I know you can! My best pieces of advice for dialog are:
- read it out loud, you can tell if the conversation would sound real or forced when you hear it
- make sure each character sounds different and not stuff you would say... I catch myself answering my characters in my own voice sometimes...
Visiting BROKEN BRANCH FALLS:
dragons – giant serpentine bodies with wings, humanoid brains, very smart, able to breath fire, peacekeepers
And for laughs:
An alphabetical list of reasons men are happier people...
D is for Dressing up
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.
Speaking of weddings -
Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental $100.
And a man thinks wedding plans take care of themselves.
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.
Speaking of weddings -
Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental $100.
And a man thinks wedding plans take care of themselves.
I agree on dialogue...it's a great way to help characterize :)
ReplyDeleteLove your new project, it appeals to my inner D&D nerd.
I think the dialogue can make or break a book!
ReplyDeleteI'll dress up for shopping, not that other stuff. The dragons are quite intriguing Tara. I love dialogue as well and possibly sometimes more than writing description/paragraphs.
ReplyDeleteGetting a character's voice right in dialogue is a tricky thing, but rewarding when it's right :)
ReplyDeleteSophie
Sophie's Thoughts & Fumbles - A to Z Ghosts
Fantasy Boys XXX - A to Z Drabblerotic
One of the things that I am doing with this first series of edits is eliminating the dialogue tag in favor of something more active or changing it to "said" from whatever is there. In some cases, I leave it alone. For instance, "screamed" I might let go. But, I am trying to streamline.
ReplyDeleteI too am fond of writing dialogues, its a wonderful way to show characterization. Infact, my CP says I tend to write a lot of dialogues.
ReplyDeleteHi Tara .. dressing up is not one of my favourite options - but yes I do do it. Dialogue ... well I can happily talk ...
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to have a dragon around .. they don't appear too often - but then I'm in the wrong part of the country!
Cheers Hilary
Gotta watch out for those pesky adverbs. My problem with dialogue is that I usually write WAY too much of it!
ReplyDeleteI hate dressing up.
ReplyDeleteWell, sometimes I like it.
But it's just too much effort. I agree with men on this one.
anna
Deeply Shallow
I also love to write dialogue, and I love to give each character a unique voice. Don't always manage to get that across but I LOVE to try :D
ReplyDeleteand yep, I have to agree on the Dressing Up part!
I love writing dialogue, too. And I agree...reading it out loud is the best thing for it.
ReplyDeleteRealistic dialogue is so important ...especially in the proper voice. It can make or BREAK a scene!
ReplyDeleteA lot of the gowns on Say Yes to the Dress cost far more than five thousand bucks! I never saw the point of spending thousands of dollars, or even more, on a dress you only wear for maybe 8 hours in one day, perhaps again for a vow renewal.
ReplyDeleteBeing old-fashioned, I don't see a big problem with adverbs, so long as they're not overused, used just for their own sake, or used superfluously (e.g., "screamed loudly"). Sometimes a well-chosen adverb is more descriptive and succinct than 10-20 extra words used just to avoid an adverb.
Dialogue is my favorite. It comes really easily to me, so I never worry about it. It's description and action scenes that trip me up. :P
ReplyDeleteI think I have become a man ;)
ReplyDeleteGood stuff. I love dialog too!
Here there be dragons...
ReplyDeleteReading out loud is the best way to discover if your dialogue sucks.
Some authors really ace dialogue. I really hate to dress up. Sweatpants should work for everything.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your dialog advice. Spot on!
ReplyDeleteAnd dragons? Love them. Broken Branch is getting more and more intriguing :D
*Broken Branch Falls* I got hungry and ate the Falls lol
ReplyDeletei have trouble communicating.. i wanted to thank you for being out there and watching my back... you guys are true angels.
ReplyDeletejeremy
It's great to be a guy! Heck, our clothes don't have to match or necessarily be clean.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I laughed at that last part. He had a vest once that...well how do I put it? It got 'lost' in the laundry a lot!
ReplyDeleteShells–Tales–Sails
I love writing dialogue too. I just have to watch that I don't let my characters rattle on too much! I dress like a man. I own one black skirt that's for weddings, funerals, and anything fancy. :)
ReplyDeleteGood advice. I need to work on making my dialog more unique for each character's voice. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteDragons : ) Love 'em!
ReplyDeleteI love writing dialogue and I HATE dressing up. LOL! I'm 66 and it should be my choice!
ReplyDeleteD.B. McNicol
A to Z: Romance & Mystery...writing my life
I agree the best way to learn about a character are through dialogues and monologues.
ReplyDelete