Tag Archives: dialog

Fiction Engine

A novel is a machine. This is never more evident than during editing. Scenes come together like the gears meshing inside an engine. And for the writer, when the first draft is long done, and the story has lain fallow for a time, coming back to the story is like lifting the hood of your trusty car. You are now ready to edit! Editing When I was younger I did not care for editing. I thought that inspiration fell upon one from heaven and words flowed like a deep river. Poetry taught me the error of this thinking. I learned to …Read more »

Listen to the World

So when you are listening to somebody, completely, attentively, then you are listening not only to the words, but also to the feeling of what is being conveyed, to the whole of it, not part of it. ~Jiddu Krishnamurti Good dialog is essential to good storytelling. Characters need to express themselves, react to their environment, argue with each other, complain, cajole, compliment, question….  in other words: act human. Good dialog opens the story like a flower budding – everything expands, opening ideas and implications for the reader. Listen In order to write good dialog you have to listen to the …Read more »

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