It’s not productive to dwell on you weak points. As a writer,
you can polish your skills with a few helpful hints.
If dialogue is your weak suit, study your favorite author’s novels and see how they handle it. Activate text to talk on your computer and have your dialogue read back to you. If you want more information on 'how too,' post a comment on my fan page. https://www.facebook.com/joycewritesromance/
Does your dialogue sound stilted, or is it how you want your characters to speak? Don’t get carried away with dialogue tags. I cringe when I read: He said nervously or she said nastily. You just told the reader the emotion you want to relay. Instead, show them.
How was your male character nervous? Did he tap his fingers when he spoke? Did he tug at his necktie or shirt collar? Raise up on his toes? How about your nasty female character? Did she glare? Cut off the speaker in mid-sentence? Raise her chin? Your reader will get the message by showing instead of telling.
Break up you narrative with dialogue and break up you dialogue with narrative. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?
Fiction readers like to see white space, otherwise it’s like reading a manual.
Keep your story moving. Cut out the scenes that slow down the plot. Sprinkle back-story throughout your novel, don’t subject your reader to pages of past history.
If dialogue is your weak suit, study your favorite author’s novels and see how they handle it. Activate text to talk on your computer and have your dialogue read back to you. If you want more information on 'how too,' post a comment on my fan page. https://www.facebook.com/joycewritesromance/
Does your dialogue sound stilted, or is it how you want your characters to speak? Don’t get carried away with dialogue tags. I cringe when I read: He said nervously or she said nastily. You just told the reader the emotion you want to relay. Instead, show them.
How was your male character nervous? Did he tap his fingers when he spoke? Did he tug at his necktie or shirt collar? Raise up on his toes? How about your nasty female character? Did she glare? Cut off the speaker in mid-sentence? Raise her chin? Your reader will get the message by showing instead of telling.
Break up you narrative with dialogue and break up you dialogue with narrative. Sounds simple, doesn’t it?
Fiction readers like to see white space, otherwise it’s like reading a manual.
Keep your story moving. Cut out the scenes that slow down the plot. Sprinkle back-story throughout your novel, don’t subject your reader to pages of past history.
Lastly, end each chapter with a hook. A sentence that says, read on.
"Then the phone rang." Hopefully the reader will want to read the next chapter to see who is calling.
"She settled into bed when she heard the doorknob rattle." Is it the wind, a burglar or the cat jumping on the door? etc,
I hope this proves helpful.
My latest eBook, MISPLACED, by Joyce Brennan is available on Amazon.com. Discover what happens to Gilda Scarlotta after she witnesses her parents murder by a mob hit-man.
It's romance, adventure all set in middle America.
Obviously I had a typo on the first line. Ahhh.
ReplyDeleteTruthfully, I didn't notice the typo - too busy agreeing with your views. Last year you advised on my book Windows to lose the adverbs and I removed a bunch from the entire ms - great advice. I still prefer to write in multiple pov's but have made the transitions smoother in book two Daniel Smith. If you have time to take a peek, previews are at Createspace and on Amazon, hope you see some improvement, but as always, your guidance always appreciated.
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