Writing Impactful Dialogue

We’ve all read those books and watched those movies that bring those quotes we can’t help but throw in a conversation. Or the conversations we can’t help but cry or leap for joy over. 

Writing impactful dialogue is (at times) hard. For some it comes easy to write those quotes. For others it can feel impossible. But whichever way it is for you, impactful dialogue that packs a punch into every conversation is almost essential to writing. 

So how exactly do you do that? How do you create those classic conversations your readers will remember for years to come? 

That’s what I want to break down for you today with five tips I use and have learned from my favorite stories!

1. Get into the Characters’ Heads

This seems simple at first, but I often find myself struggling with this, especially while I write dialogue. It could end up sounding forced and like you as the author are speaking instead of the characters. 

So, yes, getting into your characters is essential. But how exactly do you do that? 

For me, the biggest thing is just developing my characters a lot. Another thing is finding that relatability with your character. In every one of your characters, I can guarantee there is at least a little bit of relatability between you and the character. Find that relatability in the emotion the character is feeling while speaking, it will cause you to put your own emotions into your words that will just cause your dialogue to stand out. 

One final thing I do (I know, I’m wierd XP) is I act out my characters dialogue. Often this means I make faces at the keyboard trying to get the right emotion down. Or I just talk to myself as though I am the character talking. I find it pretty fun and it’s a good way for me to get into character. XD

2. Don’t be Afraid to Throw in Humor

Okay, let’s be honest here. Most of the best quotes are the ones that make us laugh our heads off. XD When that one character cracks a joke or says something humorous so seriously, we can’t help but laugh. 

Now, I’m not saying all your dialogue has to have humor—because it all depends on your characters—but it is really good to throw in a few fun conversations throughout any book. They keep readers engaged and laughing and quoting your book. 

One way I do this is (like I said before) get into character. Look at the situation and your character’s personality and just roll with it. Throw in a few humorous comments.

3. Pay Attention to Real Life Conversations

I can’t emphasize this enough! This is super helpful for every aspect of your dialogue. Talking with other people or paying attention to conversations is a great way to get real-life experience with realistic, impactful conversations. 

I for one, love taking pieces of inside jokes or those fantastic one-liners that have been said in a conversation and throwing them into my dialogue. 

And not only jokes, but high-tension or stressful conversations as well. I know most of the time they aren’t the same as a life-or-death conversation our characters love to have XD, but they are a good way to pay attention to emotion and the way people act. 

4. Watch Movies and Read Books with good Dialogue 

I know I usually say this for everything, but it’s true for all of it. One of the best ways we can replicate impactful dialogue is by studying it. Some of my absolute favorites are Star Wars and the Lord of the Rings movie series, because they have great emotion packed in there and great dialogue. 

For books, I would really suggest Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan, the Green Ember series by S.D.Smith, and The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson. All of these have great dialogue that are worth quoting and are emotional all at the same time. 

5. Let the Characters Take Over

This sounds a little odd, but I find it to be helpful. Often we overthink the conversations between the characters when really it would be more helpful to just write it. Allow the characters to shine through and talk on their own. I find a lot of times where I have no idea what the characters are going to say, but somehow the words get written on the page. XD 

So, allow the characters to take over. Let them tell their own story and talk with their friends or nemesis. 

Hope this was helpful! Let me know in the comments some of your suggestions for great dialogue in books/movies/shows! 

Until next time, 

A.J. Syngraféas