Writing process: dialogue

[askerian]

I am the silliest. It is me.

BUT IT WORKS FOR ME OKAY.


askerian: one thing that helps me with dialogue is to play it out loud like it's a theater play
shewhoflies: really?
askerian: helps make me realize "okay there's no way he wouldn't stutter, this sentence is way too long" and "no, the other guy would interrupt there" and whether the description needs a "he whispered" or "she snapped/yelled/hissed" etcetera
shewhoflies: ooohhhhhhh *_____*
askerian: it just flows way more naturally when you've said it out loud
shewhoflies: hahaha, yeah, one thing that gets me mad is when in a fight someone says something too long
askerian: yeah, no, someone would interrupt them! D:<
shewhoflies: YESSSS
askerian: ... i do it in my bedroom with the blinds drawn because people seeing me = embarrassing as fuck XD;;;
shewhoflies: <3<3<3
askerian: also since i'm walking around my bedroom i end up acting out some gestures, and that makes the scene more alive than just dialogue, and sometimes having the characters move in each other's space has a serious influence on what they say and how it diverges. also, body language is important too.
shewhoflies: OMG.
askerian: like a dialogue over the radio goes way different than a dialogue when they can get all in each other's space and roll their eyes and shove each other around.
askerian: and/or surprise!make outs. >_>
shewhoflies: heeee. you're an actress!
askerian: ... pffff as if XD
shewhoflies: .........XD
askerian: maybe internally, because yeah, that playing thing? in the dark. like i'm some rad bartending rper. [/old meme is old.]
shewhoflies: XDDDD
shewhoflies: still.
shewhoflies: that
shewhoflies: is
shewhoflies: pretty
shewhoflies: awesome.
askerian: nyooooooooo
askerian: anyway people wanted me to do theater and i'm like AHAHAHA IN PUBLIC??? YOU WILL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE.
shewhoflies: XDDDDDD
askerian: but for fic writing seriously it really helps make things feel more alive
askerian: ... tho i often end up running through the same scene about a dozen times before it settles on one version.
shewhoflies: wooooooooooooooooow *_____________*
askerian: pfff
askerian: half the time when my AIM away message says i'm dancing i'm actually self-rping XD;;
shewhoflies: *_______________*
askerian: ... this results in an incredible amount of ridiculous plotbunnies where characters have a party for absolutely no reason I can figure out and sing songs to each other that probably wouldn't even exist in their time period. but it's fun. XD
shewhoflies: OMG.
shewhoflies: <3<3<3
askerian: those will never leave my head. like. ever.
askerian: but i totally have a battlefield terra sidefic where the eight pilots also play heavy metal. *hangs head*
shewhoflies: awesome!
askerian: pffhahaha nooo XD sillyfun
shewhoflies: but fun.
askerian: yes. u.u

Comments

[lexicology]

That seems like a perfectly reasonable way to work on dialogue. And yeah, I know those plotbunnies for characters listening to music they totally wouldn't, from listening to music while trying to work out plot stuff. They're fun. :D

...And now I kinda wanna see that Battlefield Terra sidefic. Lemme guess, Jake gets totally into it and is headbanging his heart out, Dave is playing it totally cool and maybe just slightly nodding along sometimes, Jade is going to town nearly as much as Jake, Rose is just sighing and going, "If you must...I guess I'll go along with it," while Roxy is totally belting out the vocals, and Karkat is curled up in a corner holding his ears aural flaps and going "WRY."

[shewhoflies.livejournal.com]

Still think you are ridiculously awesome okay. u.u

The work you're putting in! It is AMAZING. You are AMAZING.

And funny too. Which is almost as good. u.u

[edenfalling]

♥

[zepysgirl.livejournal.com]

And suddenly it all makes sense! XD

[ryouseiteki.livejournal.com]

I do the dance party thing too. It'd kind of different for each fandom for me though. Like, one always tends to be like a halloween party thing. Another is always karaoke style. In one of them one of the main characters is always alone and flying. In another one of the sidecharacters is always alone with one of the main characters and sings to them...

When it's not a singing/dancing thing, it's fight scenes or something. Sometimes a vehicle/spaceship battle thing. Um. *slinks away*

[red-volpe.livejournal.com]

Asuka, stop being adorable. STOP THAT RIGHT NOW. Okay, no, it's okay, I like it when you're adorable. <3

[shiroyue.livejournal.com]

This sounds so pro, you have no idea. You are a pro, it is you.

[lurker-lost.livejournal.com]

I learnt the importance of body-language (where characters ARE in relation to each other, who's looking where, etc) from your writing. I also started paying a lot more attention to which characters interrupt others, and when someone is likely to get interrupted.

I tell you this because my tutor recently gave me mad praise because I was doing this, and I was sitting there the whole time thinking of you. <3

[acts_of_tekla]

o.o I totally thought I was the only crazy person who did this!

[romantiscue.livejournal.com]

I imagine you going "To porn or not to porn, that is the question!" Only instead of a skull, you're totally holding up a few notes on your next scene of slashy goodness. *mind in the gutter, yay!* Anyway, adorkable, you XD