A Wordsmith’s Guide to Writing Authentic Dialogue
Do you lack confidence when writing dialogue for your fictional characters?
Do you want to learn how to make each person have a distinctive voice?
Real conversations wander. Fictional dialogue can’t afford to.
A Wordsmith’s Guide to Writing Authentic Dialogue is a practical, encouraging craft book for fiction writers who want dialogue that does more than fill the page. You’ll learn how to make every exchange purposeful, character-specific, and charged with subtext—without gimmicks, melodrama, or the dreaded “As you know…” exposition.
You will learn how to:
· build distinct voices through rhythm, worldview, and verbal habits (not quirky spelling);
· show status and power through questions, interruptions, silence, and topic control;
· handle tags, beats, and action cleanly so dialogue moves instead of clogs;
· write conflict that escalates and changes shape (without repeating itself);
· approach trauma, consent, and emotionally heavy scenes without voyeurism or melodrama.
You'll also find:
· short, generic examples you can learn from immediately;
· focused exercises you can complete in 10–20 minutes;
· diagnose-and-rewrite case studies (where relevant);
· checklists: quick bullet points to use while drafting and revising.
If your characters explain too much, sound the same, circle the point, or talk in a void—this guide will give you clear tools to diagnose the problem and rewrite with confidence.
Have the confidence to write dialogue that reflects the best of your characters, and the best of your writing. Pick up your copy today.
My Review:
A Wordsmith's Guide to Writing Authentic Dialogue is a fantastic guidebook for any seasoned or aspiring writer, in any genre. I found the information invaluable and perfectly crafted. This guide is very in-depth, explanatory, and filled with not only techniques and strategies but the "whys" behind each recommendation. As I moved through the book, I nodded my head in acknowledgement and agreement often.
Good dialogue is crucial in every story. I've read many stories over the years that I included "choppy dialogue," "inconsistent dialogue," "uncomfortable dialogue" (an not in a plot moving way) in my reviews. The techniques in this book would be huge helpers to those types of stories. Like I said, the choppy, inconsistent, and/or uncomfortable dialogue wasn't used to bring tension, or move the story along. The dialogue was just not written well in those books.
I know how hard it is to write a story, regardless of length or genre. I have about a dozen novels I've started and then abandoned for various reasons. Making sure my characters talk to each other smoothly is a hard task and I've not been entirely successful. This guide is going to take things to the next level!
Now to just find the time to get back to my writing!
I was provided with a copy of this book. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
My Rating:
Purchase Link:
Amazon
Meet the Author:
Elizabeth was born and bred in the picturesque harbour town of Whitehaven in the northwest of England, where the long, wet winters moulded her into a voracious reader of fiction to escape the dismal weather.
In 2016, Elizabeth set up her freelance editing and proofreading business, EMH Editorial Services. In 2018, she quit the corporate world and concentrated her energy full-time towards her love of the written word.
Elizabeth has published timeslip novellas (the Lost Souls series) and a stand-alone novel, A Light Shines in Darkness, based on Blessed Angelina of Marsciano. She is also the author of The Wordsmith’s Guides, a series of nonfiction books on the craft of writing.
Elizabeth now lives with her husband in the warm and sunny south of France, where the wine is cheaper than the water, and the cats spend their days hunting lizards and dreaming of the birds that roost on the roof.
Social Media Links:
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