Character interaction is all about relationships, and dialogue is no exception. Every conversation centers around one or more important topics, and when discussing a topic it’s important to consider the following questions:
dialogue writing
Modalities-How People Speak 206-02
What are modalities?
A modality is how someone translates real world experiences into memories, and how they retrieve those memories. For example, when someone reads text, there are a few different ways they might remember what they’ve read:
Remembering the specific words on the page
Saying the words out loud and remembering the sound
Reinterpreting the text and remembering their own version of it
Unique Voices, Using Dialogue to Reveal Character 206-01
Clarity is an essential component of any good story. In dialogue, clarity means making sure audiences know who is speaking. The most common method is to identify the speaker by name, typically by using a tag such as “(name) said”. But it’s also important to make sure a character’s voice is consistent.
High Intensity Dialogue 205-05
4. Debate
Medium to High Complexity
Medium Intensity
Medium to High Importance
Debates are a little more intense, a little more conflict driven. Where a focused conversation has at least one invested character, debates have at least two, each with their own position. Debates are, in many ways, a median between focused discussion and argument. A focused discussion may transition into debate on the way to becoming an argument, just as an argument may downgrade to a debate or even a focused discussion.
Low Intensity Dialogue 205-04
Conversations take many forms, but they generally hinge on 3 variables: complexity, intensity, and importance/value.