Flashbacks

Avoid flashbacks if at all possible. A story should begin at the beginning and go to the end with few visits to the past. However, our characters do have a past, and their emotions tie into their past, happy or sad.  Therefore, if the information is necessary for your reader to understand your story then go for it. But be careful. 

The best way to use a flashback is through dialogue, action and/or conflict. If you don’t want to put your reader to sleep, narrative is a big no-no.  So make your flashback vivid with plenty of tension. “Stein on Writing” says it better than anyone. “Fiction should seem to be happening right now.” This is an important statement because a flashback can be obtrusive and stop the story dead. Before using that flashback, ask yourself if your story would read better without one.

Writing Dialogue – 7 Crazy Ideas That Work

by, marlene cronkhite
This may sound a little crazy, but as writers, when you think about dialogue as simply giving a voice to the different characters living inside your head, writing then becomes an exciting journey and very rewarding. 

Characters 

The characters we create come from somewhere inside us, in all that we are, and all that we know. When we create our characters from within, the act of writing dialogue becomes uniquely individual. Usually the characters lead the way and help “show” what they are doing. By this I mean their actions express how they feel and what they’re thinking.  Another important aspect  is to not force characters to tell each other matters that each one already knows, just so the reader will be clued in. This is an obvious trick that the reader is sure to pick up on.

Voice

In order to write good dialogue, you need to hear those characters speaking in your head and capture their voices in your story. Make their voices unique by making sure that they speak according to their backgrounds.  Show how your characters react or feel by the using description of their voice quality and physical movements.

Tags

The use of “said” and “asked” are the only tags you need. The reader needs just enough information about who is speaking to be able to move ahead in your book.  The tags should melt into the background of narrative, not depict the scene or your character’s feelings.  Try to stay away from dialogue tags like: replied, voiced, expressed, vented, responded, cried, howled, bellowed, shouted, vocalized, asserted, declared, whispered, stated, uttered. These tags can botch up an otherwise wonderful, rich story. Make your character’s dialogue razor-sharp and you won’t even need tags.

Tension

You can easily create tension in dialogue when you create dynamic characters that are outspoken and driven.  Tension, one of the most important factors in fiction writing, gives the reader a sense of urgency and keeps him turning the page.

Dialect

It’s probably best to avoid using dialect all together when writing dialogue. It is difficult to read and if it’s not done just right it may sound amateurish.

Quality

The  “umm’s” and “ahhh’s” in dialogue and what he bought at the grocery store can be pretty boring stuff. Stay focused on your exciting plot/storyline. Keep your dialogue vibrant and alive so you don’t put your reader to sleep in a state of monotony.

Test

A good way to test your dialogue is to read it out loud.