- Less is more. Dialogue should be understated and expressed in as few words a possible, unless the scene is trying to convey an atmosphere, such as the pressures of working in an office.
- Watch out for repeating information, spouting platitudes, and dialogue that “feels” wordy or stating the obvious. Sometimes too much dialogue can leave the viewer feeling pummelled over the head.
- Use subtext. Not every question requires a response. Evasiveness, obliqueness and non-replies can say a lot, as can action that contradicts what is being said.
- Cut the small talk, greetings and chit-chat about the weather. Begin a scene as tardily as possible.
- Sometimes, simply cutting dialogue will add to the script. Deadwood can become invisible. Cut, cut, and cut again in order to get to the essential core of the dialogue.
- Use dialogue as a convenience for driving the plot with care.
Read more at Suite101: How to Write Dialogue for Screenplays: Creating Characters & Convincing Speech in Movie Script Writing
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