: Re: How to convert dialogue in to paragraph? This is my first time writing a novel. In my novel, there is a part of the married life of my protagonist who is a woman. I don't have any experience
I'm going to focus solely on the How to convert dialogue in to paragraph? question.
There isn't one technique but several that should be used together. Here's four that seem to be the most important IMHO.
Mention actions in between dialogues. Maybe Anna flopped down onto the coach, thus showing she was tired. Maybe John dropped his phone with a low curse as he took it out of the jeans pocket. No need to actually report the curse used.
Mention expressions that highlight emotions and feelings. Maybe Anna scratched her nose as she mentioned a friend's opinion she disagrees with. Maybe John frowned at a joke he didn't think funny at all.
Choose one POV (to avoid head hopping) and mention thoughts that are never expressed out lout. Maybe Anne said the dessert was terrible but John thought it wasn't that bad. He really doesn't understand her fixation with very sweet desserts. 'Yeah, it wasn't very sweet, I suppose,' he ended up saying.
If the dialogue is getting long, use indirect speech (mixing it up with free indirect).
"Not very sweet? It was bitter and sour and... God, it wasn't even a dessert at all!"
He once more admitted it could have used some sugar, then ostensibly looked at his phone.
"I hope I didn't crack it when I dropped it."
"Let me see..."
She looked at it from every angle before handing it back with a careless 'it's fine'. But at least she'd forgotten the wretched dessert.
Answer to comments
Writing insn't a mathematical endeavour. While you can analyse a text and come up with statistics, you wouldn't want to do the opposite (start with statistics and then write). What you're after when you write is the right feel. For the techniques above, you want to strike a balance. Play it by ear until it feels like if flows naturally.
Here's another example:
The romantic film Ann had chosen had been one of the most stupid things I had ever seen, but she'd loved it so I'd said it had been nice. As we entered the house, Ann flopped onto the sofa with a deep sigh.
"Are you feeling tired?"
She yawned a yes and I sat next to her. Although I had hated the movie, there was something that had stuck in my mind.
"You really liked that movie, didn't you?" I waited for her to nod and tried to sound casual. "Do you think all guys are as clueless with kids?"
Because the film's supposed comedy had all been about how terrible the husband was taking care of his newborn baby, and he'd heard Ann say 'that's so true' at a few moments.
"Not every guy, but let's face it: it's women who have babies. It just comes natural to us, while men are naturally geared to... I don't know. Bring in the meat, I guess!"
Did she really think that? Did it mean that, when it was time for us to have children, she wouldn't consider the possibility of me staying home with them in the first years?
"I've always been good with kids," I said quietly. "I used to babysit for my neighbours when I was younger, you know?"
In this longer example, the reader is privy to John's thoughts but not Anne's.
More posts by @Rivera824
: Can I publish my novel as a 13 year old? I’m writing a short novel about a young teenage girl who loses her brother and comes close to death. She travel around trying to find his killer
: I have read books where authors deliberately misspelled words to try to describe the character's speaking. However, I personally think that this makes it difficult to read and awkward. Instead
Terms of Use Privacy policy Contact About Cancellation policy © selfpublishingguru.com2024 All Rights reserved.