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Exercise #737: Craft
Posted 12/1/17
Let’s revisit dialog tags. It’s a fragile balance, figuring out when to use these things and when not to, as well as limiting unnecessary descriptions. I loved the -ly words when I was learning how to read but I’ve since discovered that good writing won’t need many of those. The reader should be able to tell from the dialog and the action what’s going on without being led by the nose.
For today’s exercise, create a scene - it does not need to be a complete story - where three characters are engaging in dialog. Use dialog tags to help the reader figure out who is who, and be wary of using too many adverbs.
If you can’t think of a setting on your own, you may pick one of these:
* A couple chooses a puppy at the city pound (two people plus the city worker).
* A man tries to pick up one of the two women at a table in a bar (three people).
* Two people haggle over the same item at a flea market (two people plus the seller).
* Teammates kibbitz while one of their members takes her turn bowling (could be many people here).
* A family considers buying a house (two adults plus the real estate agent and any number of kids).
You may change the gender of any of the characters above.
Critiquers, along with a technical critique, you might consider answering these questions:
* Was this piece helpful to you as a writer? Why or why not?
* Could you easily follow who was saying what? Why or why not?
Word limit: 1200
Please use the subject line
SUB: Exercise #737/yourname
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