Page 3 Voice and Dialogue

Character type is often developed through voice in dialogue, a conversation between two or more people.

Dialogue should:

  • set the scene
  • advance action
  • establish a conflict
  • foreshadow the main idea
  • give insight into character

Dialogue builds drama for example:

"Jump!"

"Not without you!"




View "Voices in the Park" by Anthony Browne.

"Voices in the Park" by Anthony Browne is a children's story, in which four different characters tell the same story.

Each character's voice is developed by:

  • typeface or font
  • vocabulary
  • the character's impression of the park
Consider whether your character's voice is logical for his or her age, education, emotion of the moment, and conflict.



Effective Dialogue


Consider the dialogue below: 


"That bull is too tame. I don't know why they put it in the draw," Mort drawled.
  1. To make the dialogue more interesting, add voice and conflict.

"That bull is a kitten," Mort drawled.

"You don't know nothin'. Knocked out Red for two days," Pete snarled.

  1. To create even more conflict, add a variety of opinions.

"That bull is a kitten," Mort drawled.

"Knocked out Red," Pete snarled.

"Shouldn't be in the draw anyway. No reason to get mangled by some crazy man killer," George said slowly.

Quickly, Red defended Buckey, "Comes from a family of good bulls. I wish I had more like him."

  1. To further make a story interesting . . .
      • Mix narration (story-telling) with dialogue.
      • Report the characters' direct speech.


Direct Speech


Our conversations are boring to read. 
A normal conversation might go something like this:


"Hi Makayla," called Stacey.

"Hey," Makayla responded.

"What's wrong," Stacey asked.

"Nothing," Makayla answered.


Remind your reader that your characters are human beings by grounding their dialogue in the real world.
Instead of writing boring dialogue, relay feelings in a concise way.

Condense the scene as in the following:


"Hi, Makayla."

Makayla looked down at her shoe, dug in her toe, and pushed around a pile of dust. "Hey," she responded.

Stacey could tell something was wrong.


Punctuating Dialogue


  1. Remember that punctuation goes inside quotations most of the time!
  2. Use "said" and other dialogue tags sparingly. However, when you use them, a comma is needed.

    "But I don't want to move to Ontario and leave my friends here ," Gurtek whined.
  1. Instead, write stronger, more descriptive sentences using direct dialogue.

    Gurtek stood in the doorway with his hands balled into fists at his side. His red eyes glared up at his mother. " Do you really want to hurt me ?"
  1. Remember to start a new paragraph whenever the speaker changes. This helps the reader to know when someone new is speaking.
  2. If action is involved with the speaking character, keep the description of the action within the same paragraph. 



Read "Use Dialogue" on page 110 of ResourceLines 7/8.



  Please contact your teacher if you have questions.