style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> Writing natural-sounding dialogue – the kind that
makes characters feel real – comes easily for a chosen few.The rest of us have to work hard at it.
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> Like anything else, it’s a skill that can be
learned and, with enough discipline and persistence, mastered.
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> But since mastery requires so much damn time and
effort, here’s a quick tool to use in the meantime.It’s a list of fifty common utterances that often
appear in natural-sounding dialogue.Work
a few of these into your script, and you’ll start sounding like a pro:
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> *Use that last one only in comic strip bubbles for
characters who are asleep.
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> So there you have it.It’s not an exhaustive list, but these are
some commonly used examples.
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> They show up a lot in Oscar winning films and
Pulitzer Prize winning plays.
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> Of course they’re only tools and are pretty much
just fillers, so you don’t want to go overboard with them, but when used sparingly
they can give your dialogue a genuine “real-life” feel.
> > There are some scripting tricks you won’t find in the screenwriting books. Here are three things I learned about setups and payoffs after years of writing and reading others’ work. > Expanding Your Setups > > Are readers not getting your big payoff? That can be really frustrating. I’ve seen it happen many…
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> All screenwriters deal with it: the dreaded negative review. Does it mean you have no talent? Does it mean you should give up? Absolutely, positively not! Here’s why: style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> Every Script Gets Negative Feedback > > I remember…
> Today I’d like to talk about emotions. Seasoned screenwriters know how to trigger emotional responses, and intuitive newbies quickly learn to tug at the heartstrings. It is without question a skill you need to master. As in everything, however, there’s a catch. > > You need to generate the right emotions. > > If…
style=”font-family: Cambria; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;”> It’s Halloween season, time to turn to spooky stuff. Going eerie won’t be hard for me at all because the screenplay biz can be downright bloodcurdling. Here’s my top five countdown of screenwriting frights: style=”font-family: Cambria; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;”> style=”font-family: Cambria; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;”> 5. Screenwriters are constantly vanishing…
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> When creating a TV series, one of the things you need to decide is how “formulaic” you want the show to be. style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> When a show is new and still largely unformed, it can feel good to carefully…
style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;”> Screenwriting can be frustrating, no doubt. Rejections. Blown deals. Inexplicable heartbreak. It’s all part of it. But don’t take it all so personally, because there’s something I’ve learned along the way: So many decisions about your precious career have nothing to do with you at all. style=”mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination:…