Screenwriting : Writing subtext in dialogue by Brian McAndrew

And does it have to be continuously throughout the script?

So first thing: you won't write subtext in dialogue. If you try that your dialogue will be as bad, just for a different reason. Here's what you'll do instead, for any offending beat: 1. Figure out the piece of information you're trying to convey. For example, "Jim loves Mary." 2. If you wrote something like this... JIM Mary, I love you. ... then rip out that page, tear it up, and use the straightest edge to give yourself a deep paper cut in the webbing between your fingers. Dip your hand in saltwater and swear out loud that you'll never convey a piece of information so straightforwardly in dialogue again. 3. Now that you've removed the offending on-the-nose dialogue, go back to the information: "Jim loves Mary." Think to yourself: how can I convey this in an INTERESTING way? 4. Kick around some ideas. Jim surprises Mary with the special spice blend for the recipe she's always wanted to try. Jim watches in seething jealousy as Mary flirts with her co-worker. Hell, Jim watches Mary while she sleeps and brushes a stray hair off her cheek. 5. Now you've basically cracked your knuckles. You're going to go back and write the real scene. For EVERYTHING I write, I have a simple mnemonic: PIE. P for Plausible, I for Integrated and E for Entertaining. However you choose to convey this beat, it should be: Plausible. That's should be easy for an I love you scene. (P is more important when it comes to plot mechanics. It means no cheap coincidences or deus ex machina.) Integrated. This is key for exposition. You don't want a whole scene (or even a whole line) just dedicated to "I love you". You want it to be buried within the larger story. Where in your larger story is there the perfect moment to convey that Jim loves Mary? In the opening shootout he takes a bullet for her? Great, now we got the information without having to slow the story down for expository dialogue. Entertaining. Never write something just to advance the plot or provide information. Every single thing has to entertain us, or be a key support for the thing that's about to entertain us. So convey "I love you" in a scene with major conflict, hilarious (integrated) comedy, a terrible shock, a surprise reversal... whatever. Remember, EVERYTHING in your story is information. Jim loves Mary. Hans Gruber is going upstairs to get the detonators. One item of information after another. How you convey that information must always be entertaining. And having someone recite the information in dialogue is definitely not entertaining.

So well said, Kerry.

Subtext is the underlining meaning beneath words and action -- what's really being communicated. And, yes, it should be used throughout a script. Subtext can also be an underlining theme that pervades throughout a story. We use subtext ourselves in how we communicate. People tend not to say exactly what they feel and mean all the time. They use innuendo, drop hints, do something to convey their feelings rather than use words. They manipulate. They use different phrases to not offend. They lie or hide true feelings behind words and action. Apply the same idea to your characters. If I write "His eyes never leave her;" what is the hidden meaning? He finds her attractive? He may be in love with her? Or, depending on the scene he could be wary of her. Suspicious. The intended meaning in those words depends on what's happening between those characters. In "A Princess Bride" when Buttercup asks the farm boy (Westley) to do things for her around the farm, he always answers. "As you wish." But, when he says those words to her he looks at her warmly and uses a soft voice. We know and Buttercup soon realizes that when he says "As you wish" what he really means is "I love you." That's subtext!

I find that the re-writing process is great for getting rid of dialogue that is too "on the nose." By then, your plot has been accomplished, so you don't have to worry about connecting point A to point B. During the rewrites, you can insert elements that intentionally mislead and divert readers away from the headlong charge toward the conclusion of the plot.

Sometimes we need on the nose dialogue too. You can't really say to someone, I went to the cattle auction to see what was being auctioned. There was a bull fetching a good price. He bellowed loud and you know what... I immediately thought of you. Sometimes subtext is funny. So how do we cut this down? .. You're bullshitting?