Action Speaks Louder Than Dialogue
Dialogue is a great thing, it is also very difficult to
perfect. Before even getting inside those quotation marks there is much work to
do! The action surrounding any dialogue is often more important than the words
said by the character. This is as true in writing as it is in life. You have
been there, I am sure, in a conversation with a client, friend, or new acquaintance,
and you are feeling things out. It is not so much about what he is saying as
how it is being said.
In life we watch for the little things, even if we do not
realize we are watching; the girl twirling her hair as she speaks to her lover,
the widening of eyes as a friend tells of an exciting night out, wringing of
hands when waiting for important news. We all do this and we all watch for it.
Why not make that as clear in our writing?
The exercise in week one focuses on this process by taking
away the dialogue altogether. Try it when editing a piece. Pull all of the
dialogue and save it is a separate file. Does your story carry well without it?
Do your characters speak as clear with their body language as with their words?
Are your characters saying something completely different in action? These are
all questions that make for a strong base to build dialogue upon.
In some rare cases, dialogue is not even required to carry
the plot of a good story. Take the example of Raptor Red by Robert
T. Bakker. Paleontologist, Bakker, wrote the story of a young Utahraptor
through the eyes of the dinosaur. With a main character whom has no
distinguishable language the weight of the story falls on description alone. I
read Raptor Red some years ago and was surprised at how wrapped into the
characters I became.
So, it can be done! This is not to say your
goal as a writer should be to remove dialogue from your toolbox, only to
imagine if you had to. Keep in mind as you work on exercises without dialogue
to make note of mannerisms and emotional cues. You might find yourself reading
people better too.
No comments:
Post a Comment