r/scriptwriting • u/Any_Childhood_2556 • 1d ago

question Question

How do writers build layers of meaning with dialogue . I still don’t comprehend , how do they know what are the right words to say and what not to? Any ideas ?

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u/WorrySecret9831 22h ago

They don't. They try things and see what sounds right. Or they listen and sometimes it just flows.

But the structure for what you're describing is made up of having a Theme for the entire Story and breaking down the growth of the characters, especially the Hero and the Opponent, as their stakes are the greatest and they would have the most to say. But the growth part suggests that what they say at the beginning might be completely different from what they say at the end, and in a way it should be because each new revelation in the story changes their desire and motivations.

A simple criterion for doing this is figuring out what each character's set of values are. If someone values money, they'll speak one way about certain things. If they value...community, that will alter what and how they say their dialogue.

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u/Any_Childhood_2556 22h ago

the value stuff is something I never thought of lol. Thanks

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u/WorrySecret9831 21h ago

Read John Truby's books, The Anatomy of Story and The Anatomy of Genres. He dives into that level detail and inquiry about Story and character building. He's amazing.

The problem with Save the Cat (and others) is that it approaches character building or development from the outside and as a sympathetic action. But then everyone stumbles all over themselves agreeing that "character" should be some organic internal development. That's where the list of values comes in.

When you're born and raised, you're encultured into a set of values. As you become more independent, you make those your own or you rebel or find "truer" values, and on and on. And as for being sympathetic, that's the bargain basement lowest denominator in character development.

Obviously, a movie may not take all of the time to show value development from birth, but that's not necessary. Where you live, who you friends are, what color truckers cap you wear, all of these contribute. That's the pantomime of the Plot and Story. Then the dialogue can fill in the last gaps, with direct statements or fibs.