March Book Giveaways

Writing Dialogue by Tom Chiarella and Hoodoo by Ronald L Smith

To continue our series of writing books, this month I will be giving away Writing Dialogue by Tom Chiarella.

You have probably heard the best way to write dialogue is to sit and listen to someone talk and then to write like that-minus the uh's and uhms in between the real speech. That is true but it is much more than that.

In chapter one Tom gives us a unique challenge: Write what you say not what people around you say.

Why would I want to do that? This helps you find your voice, who you are.

Instead of writing down mundane phrases you hear people saying, listen for the unusual. I have an aunt that I love to listen to because she is always saying something off the wall. I keep a notebook handy when I'm around her. Hehehe.

This slim book has eight chapters that will lead you to write conflict by your characters dialogue.

You will learn to compress exchanges between characters. This helps with character development and to drive the plot forward. Exercises will help  master these skills.

Another good  exercise is to study comic strips and the economy of words used.

Sometimes dialogue is not needed. Silence can be as big a mover as talking. Examples of this are given.

To use or not use dialogue tags is a question we must ask ourselves and it is unique to the story we want to tell.

An appendix and index are included.

This is a good book to refer to again and again for those pesky dialogue questions that surface from time to time.

If you would like to win this book or the book Hoodoo please enter using the rafflecoptor or leave a comment.

Winners will be announced April 3rd. So check back here to if you won.

See you next week!