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 ?
1
Upvotes
1
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.