Screenwriting : Beginner writer in need of some advice. by Dylan Kalloo

Dialogue should be a reflection of character; think about your characters, are they funny/rude/psychotic? Their characteristics and interactions should be reflected in the dialogue.

Time to put your acting hat on. Get into character and go through the scene without any written lines or anything, just wing it. First do it from one character's point of view, then the other. If you stay in character the dialogue practically writes itself. You may even surprise yourself with things you never would've thought of just staring at the computer screen.

The big thing, for me, was to simply go sit down and listen to people in conversation. Any public place is good for it. Something I see in some screenplays is the writer trying to tell the story in the dialog instead of letting the conversation be part of the story. In other words, excessive exposition. I have been guilty of it on more than one occasion. So few conversations are completely spoken. Conversation I had an hour ago. THEM Hey d' you get it? ME Put in the paperwork. THEM Cool. ETA? ME Unknown. THEM Later. Obviously that was a continuation of earlier conversations. But it is something to keep in mind. Rock on!

I have found the recording function of my phone to be invaluable .. Record a conversation and listen back to the beat. Transpose that and then look at the pattern ... At first I felt there weren't enough words on the paper but that's because it's not a book it's a screenplay ... Read some well know screenplays and see the patterns ... You will feel much better when you realize yours looks right ... Once you have written a few pages ... Act it out loud to yourself ... Time it and get an idea how long a page is in a movie ... Follow a screenplay while you watch the movie ... All of these things tune your brain into screenplay mode ... Good luck .. Wx

Here's a general Writer's Life tip: when you're in the public sphere, listen. Eavesdrop on other diners, listen to the conversations behind you on the train, in line at the store, anywhere there's conversation. Listen not just to WHAT they're saying but to HOW they are saying it: the rhythm of the words, the cadence of how people speak, inflection and tone and accent. Lather, rinse, repeat as often as you can. IMO this is about the only way to do it and really be able to create natural speech in your characters (in all its forms, natural speech depends on a number of things.) Hope that helps!

What helps me is that I pretend to be that character with few differences. What would you say to a murder when hes pointing a gun at you? How would you act? What would you say when you are trying to get your love of your life back? Don't put your entire personality into it. Still stay true to that character's traits.

I always kinda go back to two of the greatest teachers of screenwriting - Syd Field and Linda Seger - when it comes to writing. KNOW YOUR CHARACTER, both stress. Syd Field's "Screenplay" book to me is one of the best primers for character and dialogue. Action is what happens, characters are who it happens to. Dialogue is a function of character, reveals character and conflicts, and moves the story forward. It also reveals the idiosyncratic nature of characters, and the subtext of which characters speak. Linda Seger's "Creating Unforgettable Characters" teaches the fundamentals and advanced techniques for developing characters and dialogue. Dialogue is the music of our scripts - it's the rhythms and the melodies that bring characters to life. It's what makes the speech of characters unique and round, and not dull and flat. Guiding me along the way, of course, is knowing what the intent and objective of each scene should be. I write that out first in my outline - along with what each character is supposed to accomplish in that scene. And then I proceed accordingly with my dialogue - a rough first cut, later polished to each character's personality. And before I've done that, and/or at the same time, I already have a lot of information on each of my characters in my characters' bios. I know their natures; their strengths and their flawes; and their consistencies and their parodoxes. I know their motivations and needs. All of that is crucial to me, going in, so I control those characters and don't let them cruelly control me. I'd go nuts(ier) if that ever happened. And as Terri Viani said...you must have an ear for how people speak naturally. That's one of the differences between bad/fair/good dialogue and great dialogue. They must sound like real human beings. Good luck, bro.

Yes the dialogue needs to be natural but also interesting. Act out the scene in your head and just splurge it all out. Then refine it.

Remember, actors who are cast in your screenplay , if appropriately casted, will bring their own, voice, persona, rhythm. Try, if it helps, casting, imagine what known actors would be great in your story. By the way I like and agree with everything, everyone has said here b4 me. Best of luck, brother.

DEFINITLY create a full back story for every character before you launch into writing. Also, always try reading it out loud to yourself and, when you're ready, have a group of friends do a 'table read'.

1) Don't force the dialogue to do all of the heavy lifting, screenwriting is writing for the screen not the speakers, so lets the actions of the characters tell the story which allows dialogue to be free and fun. 2) What Bill said: it's all about really knowing your characters. 3) No one ever comes right out and says what they want... they hint around. 4) In my Dialogue Blue Book one of my tips is to think about a character's attitude. This is part of their character... are they perpetually upbeat? Do they try to make everything about themselves? Do they want to impress everyone? Are they hiding something? Their attitude doesn't come out in the subject of their dialogue but in the way they say it... like a stand up comic's delivery of a joke. Give 100 stand up comics the same basic joke and they will each find a different way to tell it that fits their onstage persona.

I totally agree with you Sarah. When you develop characters thoroughly (down to what they would wear, their hair style and their favorite music) you can get a feel of them so they become real people. You will "hear" their voices talk to you to tell their stories. When you hear their voices then you know what they would say or if it seems like it fits the scene. Watching a lot of movies helps to show how dialogue can flow too.

Totally love and agree with what and Dawn and Tony said . Thanks.

@Tony, lol! Here's another bribe, I also love Best Years of Our Lives. Then again so did everyone that year, for it was an Oscar winner.

The funny thing about the best movie dialogue overall is that it's not real life, but it sounds like it is on screen. Listen to people? - Yes. Distill it down to the essence? - Definitely.

@Tony, of cause not, we both saw it on TCM, just last week, in separate living rooms or bedrooms of cause. Lol