Writing dialogue that sounds like people actually talk

Dialogue is one of the first things a reader notices. When it works, you forget you are reading. When it does not, every line feels like a speech.

Listen first

Spend a day listening. On a bus, at a tea stall, at a family dinner. Notice how people interrupt each other, trail off, change the subject, answer a different question from the one they were asked. Write down a few lines exactly.

Real conversation is full of half sentences. On the page you need to trim it, but keep the feeling.

People do not say everything

A common fault is characters telling each other things they both already know. "As you know, Rohan, your father and I have been married for thirty years." No one talks like that.

Ask whether the information is for the other character or for the reader. If it is only for the reader, find another way to deliver it.

Give each voice its own habits

Think about how each person speaks. Short or long sentences. Formal or casual. Do they use slang, a favourite phrase, a certain way of avoiding a question? Someone nervous may ramble. Someone who has power may say very little.

In books set in India, this often includes the mix of languages people use. A character may switch from Hindi to English mid sentence, depending on who they are talking to. Let that show.

What is the scene really about?

The best dialogue has a second layer. Two people may be talking about dinner while actually arguing about who is respected in the house. This is called subtext. You do not need to explain it. If the reader can feel it, you have done it right.

Keep tags simple

"He said" and "she said" are nearly invisible, which is the point. Words like "exclaimed" or "retorted" draw attention to themselves. Often you can skip the tag if it is clear from the content or from a small action.

Instead of "I am angry," she said angrily, try her slamming the cupboard door while she speaks.

Read it out loud

If it sounds stiff when you say it, it will sound stiff in the reader's head. Reading aloud is the quickest test. Better still, ask a friend to read the parts with you.

Cut the greetings

Most conversations start with hello and end with goodbye. You rarely need them. Enter late and leave early. Begin the scene when something interesting is already happening.

A small exercise

Take a dialogue scene from your draft. Cut it by a third. Remove every line where a character only repeats or agrees. Read it again. Usually it is better, and the characters seem sharper.