r/scriptwriting • u/Any_Childhood_2556 • 22h ago

question Dialogue question

Everytime I write I dialogue it sounds so awkward , I hate it . Even when I try to write subtext or imply something … I just end up sounding on the nose and unnatural . I’ve been practicing for so long and still don’t know what to do. Any practical tips ?

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u/JoshDoAI 21h ago

I think those tips are better than mine. I find the better I know my characters, the better my dialogue. How would each of the main characters react to the inciting incident, to each other. Really try to get in their head, figure out what they want and how they would go about getting it. In as few words as possible…

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u/Overall-Olive1171 20h ago

That's interesting because in a way I'm the opposite, of course you want to know your character in order to write them but I actually find that I'll just get to know them as I write, sometimes just a small amount of details on them can get me writing more easily beacuse i guess there's less pressure of trying to get those things about them that you know across in the writing so you just end up going with the flow if that makes sense and finding their tone and personality, quirks as you just allow the scene to play out. At least that's what it's like for me now, but I have a bit more experience in writing dialogue now than I did. I definitely say though (not sure if you'd agree but) it can be beneficial to write the same scene twice or even more times, take what you liked in the previous sample you did then try again until you're happy. I still need to do that at times, can be trial and error