Movie dialogue preface

You want to know how to write dialogue, but many of the screenwriting
tips you get are too broad, less specific, and feel a bit hollow.

Fact is...

Movie and TV dialogue often suffers from diminishing returns.

That's because people listen to podcasts and news...

But they watch TV and movies.

Understanding how to write a screenplay depends on your ability to write

action lines, transitions, and compelling characters before writing
dialogue.

If your goal is to learn how to write a screenplay, the first screenwriting tip
is for you to create a writing workflow that ends with writing dialogue.

If you follow these steps in order, your scripts will show to producers that
you know how to write great dialogue, and you will become a better
screenwriter.

So let's begin with our screenwriting tips for writing better dialogue.

HOW TO WRITE DIALOGUE

1. Gather useful research

Ever hear someone say, “Write what you know.”?

Me too — it’s safe advice. You can look at it two ways. They either think
you should lace in elements from your own experiences into your
characters and plot, which is the kind route. Or that you won't do your
research.

If you want to write a detective thriller:

 Reach out to retired detectives.

 Watch great detective films and documentaries.

 Read biographies on detectives and FBI agents.

People love to learn from films, so do some heavy research on a specific

topic, and then use what you learned to entertain others.

A lack of research will sap the willing suspension of disbelief…

Want to write about Lawyers? Astronauts? Tech Companies?

Figure out as much as you can before you begin to write your screenplay,
and definitely before you begin writing dialogue.

WRITING DIALOGUE FOR FILM

2. Show... don’t tell

As far as cinema and television goes — action lines reign supreme.

Writing dialogue feels nice...

It flows pretty naturally and takes up a lot of real estate on the page.

But…

Fifteen pages of good dialogue isn’t worth one page of decent action.

The best modern example of this is Mad Max: Fury Road.

I’m a big Tom Hardy fan, and while I was surprised to see him basically
grunt his way through the entire film, I thought it was perfect.

Pay attention to the use of dialogue in the scene below:

We see everything we need to see, and the vast majority of dialogue in the
film is there to enhance the actions taking place on screen.

The filmmakers didn't default to writing dialogue heavy scenes.

This is one of the reasons why dialogue that accompanies stunt sequences
very rarely seems extraneous — especially as a form of punctuation for the
scene.

That's because the action is the main course, and the dialogue is the
dessert.
Ever heard of a one liner?

Watch the video below on car chase sequences:

Mad Max: Fury Road happened to be centered around spectacle…

But even if your film is an edgy character piece or a zany romantic

comedy, you’ll always capture an audience with more action and less talk.

3. Use an outsider for exposition

One of the best tips for learning how to write dialogue is to use an
outsider.

By using an outsider to introduce information, you create a feeling of

legitimacy, as though the information you hope to convey is common
knowledge.

Here's a dialogue example:

Instead having your character say...

“I avoid conflict.”

Have another character say...

“I know you like Joe... but he really isn’t the conflict resolution type.”

Here is an example of an outsider introducing information in The Big

Lebowski:

In the film, you really can't see the photo of Lebowski very well, so the
dialogue helps to sell both the joke, but also the information on Lebowski's
disability.

You're not sure how to feel, sort of like The Dude.

4. Write between the lines

Often the best dialogue occurs when a character avoids the truth. This
doesn't mean they have to lie, or deceive, but they can't be on the nose.
This is especially true when your character is in a compromising situation,
which should be quite often since that often makes for a great scene.

Think about the dialogue in Breaking Bad:

How many times did Walter White say the opposite of what he was
actually thinking? How about the passive aggressive sister-in-law Marie?

When the viewer has prior knowledge of something, it can be especially

interesting or even funny to see someone lie or misrepresent their true
feelings…

We get to be in on the joke.

You're not just learning how to write dialogue, but what you're actually
learning is how to create scene with layers that can your dialogue can
exploit.

The focus scene in the video below is a great example of "writing between
the lines" because Ford wishes he could just say "don't get in my way" but
he can't just come out and say it - at least not until the end of the scene.

5. Develop a complete character

When learning how to write dialogue in your screenplay, you need to ask
yourself how people operate in their daily lives based on mood.

I doubt you are a one dimensional human being.

You’ve been kind, and you’ve been a jerk — maybe even on the same day.

Your characters should be just as complex, but it’s important not to have
huge shifts in their attitude in a short amount of time.

Your hero can be a grouch like John Creasy in Man On Fire.

Your villain can be polite like Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds.

Check out how Tarantino writes dialogue in the scene below:

Actions speak louder than words, and your characters need to show us
their true nature with deeds while they use dialogue to distract the viewer.
There is more to this than simply writing dialogue that is diametrically
opposed to the nature of your character, because there is nuance to
everything.

Building a complete character is one of the most important screenwriting

tips for writing better dialogue because it makes your job that much
easier.

Your characters may reveal tiny portions of the truth, or have a moment of
stress that boil up and overcome them - all of that works well.

Ever heard of the term "one note"?

Now imagine a song that is literally one note.

Give characters a unique voice

We all have different speech patterns, catch phrases, and our own unique
tempo when we speak, and you should implement this into your dialogue
as well.

A common screenwriting tip for this is to cover up the character name and
see if you can identify each character purely based on the dialogue.

This is one of the reasons character archetypes are useful, because they
force you to think in terms of personality and motivation with each
moment.

What would a leader say versus a caregiver?

Think about combining a unique voice with a complex character.

If we see the caregiver act one way for most of the film, and then see a
moment where they change — you can cement it with some dialogue that
shows a willingness to change their speech patterns.

This was basically the entire plot of King’s Speech.

Avoid redundancy, and definitely don’t say the same thing twice...

There is a great scene in Birdman where Riggan and Mike rehearse, and
Mike rips apart a scene and begins to take over as the director.
Mike: “Hey, can I make a suggestion, do you mind?”

Riggan: “Yeah, yeah sure, no not at all.”

Mike: “Okay, just stay with me.... you've got four lines after that, that all
say the same thing. "I didn't even know the man, I only heard his name
mentioned in passing, I wouldn't know, you'd have to know the

particulars..." The point is, you don't know the guy, we f - king get it. Make
it work with one line:

"I didn't even know the man."

This was one of my favorite moments in the film.

Mike explains this screenwriting tip perfectly.

We get it…. make it work with one line.

Whoever made this Birdman movie should win an Oscar or something:

A film or show is a train on the tracks.

We don’t reverse unless there is new information to be had, so once

you’ve said or shown something… move on.

We get it… make it work with one line.

8. Stretch important information

Just because you have important information that you need to convey to
your viewer, it doesn't mean you have to show your cards right away.

Make them work for it.

Lead the viewer with little breadcrumbs.

See an example of writing breadcrumb dialogue in the scene below:

This scene give you little hints about the relationship between these two
characters, while also giving you some back story.
When you go back and watch Fight Club, you will see these moments
laced all throughout the script - and they work really well on their own.

Check out the script for this scene below:

If you go back and piece all of those lines together, you can see someone
dipping into anarchy and madness… but when you give information to the
viewer in single servings you can stretch the effectiveness of your ultimate
point.

Fight Club might have some of the best single serving dialogue in a film…

Very clever.

How’s that working out for you?

9. Show us the interesting stuff

There is an old screenwriting tip of “arrive late, leave early.”

What this basically means is skip the pleasantries.

If you have a scene with two divorcees in the middle of arbitration,

like Wedding Crashers, we don’t need to start the scene with the clerk
unlocking the meeting room door. Setting up the chairs. Filling up the
water glasses.

We don’t need to see people enter the room.

We don’t need to see them leave at the end.

What we do need to see is the middle portion… the fight.

But how does this relate to dialogue?

On the path to leaning how to write a screenplay you will quickly learn
this:

Your dialogue is an extension of your scenes.

If your scene is trudging through some super boring situation there is a

pretty good chance the accompanying dialogue won’t be much better.
See how this idea plays out in the scene below:

The reason I named this section “show the interesting stuff” is because
I’ve often watched films and shows that will have this big moment
happen…

And then cut away to later that night!

Why?

I was so darn caught up in this well crafted and stressful moment.

Stay on the moments right after a murder happens.

Stay right after the guy misses the game winning field goal.

You will automatically write better dialogue when it accompanies a truly

interesting moment in your script.

10. Logical conflict is good

People will say “conflict is good in scripts” but I respectfully disagree.

Logical conflict is good in scripts, in fact it is baked into the cake.

Conflict is also different than arguing.

Take the film Adaptation.

Charlie and Donald are very rarely arguing, but there is a sense of conflict
between them — one is a struggling professional screenwriter, and the
other is a fresh screenwriter who seems to be inspired at every turn.

We know Charlie doesn’t want to hear his brother’s excitement, but he

also loves his brother and doesn’t want to take the wind out of his sails…

He wouldn’t want someone to do that to him, and this makes the dialogue
writing process so much simpler, more logical, more interesting.

Want to know how to write better dialogue?

Build logical conflict.

Check out the scene below to see what I mean:

That is true conflict… inner conflict and external at the same time, and it
all makes perfect sense to anyone with a life.

And every moment in your script doesn’t need conflict.

Writers will hear that conflict is good and then inject every scene in their
script with some form of conflict, but this more often than not translates to
a bunch of people screaming at one another.

This is manufactured conflict instead of natural conflict.

If you're wondering how to write a movie script, don't manufacture

conflict. Viewers are far too sophisticated for that, and it will constantly
get in the way of you writing better dialogue in your screenplays.

The word that comes to mind is “contrived”.

You want to write a good script, which really means setting up strong
cinematic devices that never let the viewer down, enhancing those devices
with your dialogue, and setting up meaningful transitions.

If you’re soaring over your script like a hawk, looking for scenes that you
can scoop up and inject with some conflict… you may be in trouble.

Conflict in your script should be natural, apparent, and baked into the cake
of your character traits, plot, and logical competition.

HOW TO WRITE FILM DIALOGUE

11. Interrupt other conversations

Have you ever had a moment where you were telling a secret, and then
someone walks up and interrupts your conversation?

It’s a compromising situation, and this works as a really great way to

stretch important information, write between the lines, and add logical
conflict…

But it also just makes for an entertaining scene.

 Even if “the interruptor” immediately asks for a private conversation,
you’ve now set up a perfect moment of conflict for your characters.

Why?

Because now we get to physically see our character make decisions.

How will they handle this delicate political situation?

Whatever the answer — it will say oodles about your characters

12. Take advantage of every role

You should never have a throw away character with throw away lines.

If you do, it is pretty self explanatory what to do with them…

Throw them away.

One of the great first lines in a film is in Die Hard:

Businessman: “You wanna know the secret to surviving air travel? After
you get where you're going, take off your shoes and your socks then walk
around on the rug barefoot and make fists with your toes.”

John McClane: “Fists with your toes?”

Businessman: “I know, I know, it sounds crazy. Trust me, I've been doing
it for nine years. Yes sir, better than a shower and a hot cup of coffee.”

Here is the scene for your reference:

Now… why is this so GREAT?

There are two reasons:

1. This character never comes back, yet he has some fun dialogue, a point of
view, and even a piece of helpful advice that most people would be
interested to try the next time they got on an airplane.

2. This interaction leads to a great piece of conflict in the film, because it is

the impetus for John McClane to take off his shoes. When the terrorists
burst into the party, he is forced to run away... shoeless.
The businessman also sees John’s pistol, which gives John the go ahead to
tell us he is a cop… the filmmakers show first, we see the outsider’s
reaction, and now John has a logical reason to fill us in on his profession.

We'll come back to this example later... I promise.

13. Don’t be a basic bard

People enjoy movies because they take us out of our comfort zone,
because they show us a world we wish to visit, but not live inside for too
long.

You don’t show a character peeling potatoes for two hours, so why would
you write the dialogue equivalent of that in your scripts?

You don’t have to be controversial, or crude, just don’t be dull.

Aaron Sorkin, Quentin Tarantino, Alexander Payne, Guy Ritchie...

These are writers well known for writing better dialogue than many of
their peers, and while one could argue that the overall style often cuts
against the rule of “unique voices” they are definitely not boring
screenwriters.

Take a look at a dialogue example below:

14. Tell us more through narration

Narration and internal VO is actually something I rather enjoy...

But often the narration is a weak play-by-play of the events taking place.
Narration isn’t supposed to be the crutch you lean on for support…

It’s the running shoes that give you that extra traction.

Take Henry Hill in Goodfellas...

You might get a quick description of the events with a bunch of extra
points that give the viewer a richer understanding of the scenes.

Here's an example of dialogue as narration in the scene below:

15. Make your actors happy

When writing dialogue in a story, it will help to think about the actors.

Actors love good story dialogue for a number of reasons, but the main one
is that auditions very rarely have actors carrying out actions...

Instead, they are in a small room reading dialogue.

This is also how actors rehearse with one another. They study dialogue
examples, or find writers who already know how to write dialogue and
take those scenes and run lines until they feel good about their
performances.

When you give your actors fun lines, they will be happy.

Now, does this mean you should sacrifice story over style? Of course not.
If you're going to get a good performance, chances are it makes the story
better.

Tell me the scene below doesn't have some great movie dialogue:

You will be able to tell that you took advantage of screenplay tips and
dialogue rules by the actor's face when they read your script.

They picture themselves on screen delivering that great line…

Even if they are portraying a coward, a good actor will spot good dialogue
in a script because it gives them something with which to work.

This is also a great way to sell your screenplay, because often times
exciting the right actor with a good role is the quickest way to have your
script produced.

16. Make your speeches count

This goes hand in hand with the last tip, but it still needs to be said.

There will be moments where you want a character to give a big speech,
and they should totally do it… but it have to work really well.

This speech in the scene below is a great example of good dialogue:

You can often reserve them for the beginning of your scene or the end of
your scene, as well as the beginning and end of your entire movie.
Speeches should generally be reserved for the most important characters in
your story — I’d say at least the top three.

17. Stay consistent until you shouldn’t

Consistency with your dialogue basically means you shouldn’t have a

character that is tonally bi-polar… unless that is the point of the character.

But if you have a good natured character who suddenly begins to tease
people left and right… you may be confusing the viewer.

Now… what about this “until you shouldn’t”?

Well, you know that good characters go through change.

Watch the scene below to see how your character can alter speech
patterns:

Coordinate your tonal shifts, changes in speaking pattern, and general

adjustments to demeanor for the really big moments in your script.

Think of act breaks and beat points.

All is lost?

Maybe have your polite housewife tell her loving husband, “I hate who I
see in the mirror and it is because of this marriage!”.

Woah… that is quite a shift…

So big in fact that it might change the entire story.

18. Foreshadowing & Call Backs

Earlier I said I’d bring back the Die Hard example, and I wasn’t joking.

That’s because it’s a great example of a call back… just like this example.

Let's watch how the dialogue from the earlier scene set up this moment:

Call backs and foreshadowing go hand in hand, but I don't like

foreshadowing.
I do like call backs, because they are really logical, show you have a point
to the events in your story, and can really please an active viewer.

Recently I saw the Jordan Peele film Us.

There were some really great call backs that had been set up by the
dialogue.

The flare gun…

The boat engine…

Hands across America.

These were all call backs set up by dialogue (and some action) that seemed
innocuous at the time, but came back at significant moments.

This is an example of good dialogue, and how to write a screenplay in

general because the dialogue seemed natural enough and informed the
story.

My favorite call back dialogue examples is Rolo Tomasi in L.A.

Confidential…

Go watch the film — I won’t spoil it.

Back to the Future did this a lot as well.

They are like little easter eggs you can hide around your script.

Call backs are also really great for comedy.

Just ask Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David.

19. Relationships alter speech

If you're learning how to write a screenplay, you will benefit greatly from
understanding how our relationships influence our speech.

When I speak to my mother on the phone, I speak one way.

When I speak with my friends on the phone, I speak a different way.

 I would assume this is the case for most everyone, but it should definitely
be the case for your characters when writing dialogue in a story.

Authority, compassion, respect, disgust — all of this comes from the

relationship dynamic we have with one another, and this will help you
write better dialogue.

You can break this dialogue rule to great effect as well.

When everyone speaks to the king one way, but our hero speaks to him
differently… it says something very profound about the character.

20. Sydney Lumet’s “Rubber duckies”

Very few books have as much insight into how to write a screenplay than
Sydney Lumet's Making Movies. Lumet films are a master class on how to
write better dialogue, and his book has some of the best screenwriting tips
around.

One of these is Rubber ducky dialogue.

Lumet and Paddy Chayefsky called it the Rubber Ducky school of drama.

Lumet — “Someone once took his rubber ducky away from him, and that’s
why he’s a deranged killer.”

Check out a humorous take on this in the example below:

This was screenwriting their term for when a character explains their
personality traits based completely around a traumatic situation in their
past.

Lumet believes that the character’s behavior should reveal their

psychology.

21. Does it bring you joy?

If you’ve watched Tidying Up with Marie Kondo you probably know two
things:

1. How to fold.

2. Does it bring me joy?

This idea did not begin with Marie Kondo, but is rather a classic method
for eliminating worldly possessions that you really don’t need.

Go through your script and find anything that doesn’t make you smile.

It doesn't matter if you've written a gore filled horror film or a prestige

movie about starving puppies who decide to finally take on the system.

Writing a good script will make you happy.

If a line of dialogue doesn’t bring you joy…

Indiana... let it go.

HOW TO WRITE DIALOGUE IN A STORY

22. Read your script out loud

This is the last step in your screenwriting audit.

You want to actually read your script aloud so that you can hear the lines
of dialogue, the rhythm, the intentions, and the length of each line.

I’ve written countless lines of dialogue that I thought were really great…

Until I read them aloud. Often, the answer presents itself. Sometimes it's a
simple contraction. Other times it’s as complicated as a complete rewrite.