Writing Tip #1: Using Dialogue Tags

Writing Tip #1:

Using Dialogue Tags

Writing Tip #1 is a tip that might be difficult for a lot of new writers to accept: you should use "said" for most of your dialogue tags!

A common mistake that many writers, especially new writers (and even some well-established, published writers) make is to try and show their skill with ~fancy~ vocabulary. Often they do this by replacing the word "said" in their dialogue tags with better-sounding alternatives. 

The problem with doing this is that dialogue tags are not there to sound good. That's what prose is for! Descriptions and use of literary devices, such as metaphors, are the opportunities for writers to show their strength at making written words sound lovely and practiced, and to establish their own unique voice. Dialogue tags have one very simple job in writing--to tell the reader who is speaking. 

In fact, you don't necessarily even need to use dialogue tags at all after every line of dialogue. If only two characters are speaking, and it is clear which one said the line, you can end the dialogue with no tag at all. Especially if you feel like you have a lot of "saids" all over the page. This is also where it is extremely beneficial to make sure each of your characters in a piece of fiction has a distinct voice, and also why it is important to make sure your characters' voices aren't generic. If they all speak in the same way, then you will be forced to use constant dialogue tags for your reader to keep track of the conversation. However, when characters have unique individual voices, the line can be distinct enough that the reader will figure out the speaker without even reading the dialogue tag first. 

For example, if you have a character that is notorious for dropping their "-g's" in words that end in "-ing," and that character also curses a lot, and you write the following line:

    "There is no way in hell I'm drivin' that fuckin' piece of shit car!"

Your reader will understand which character said the line because it is in line with said character's voice. 

Okay, now you're probably thinking: Okay, I understand that I don't need to use dialogue tags all the time. But when I do, why does it have to be "said?" Why can't it be something more original?

The major reason you don't want to avoid the word "said" or replace it in every dialogue tag is that it actively pulls the reader out of the scene. 

One of the main goals of making your fiction writing sound really good is so that your reader becomes immersed in the story, so that they can picture the scene in their head while they are reading. You want your reader to be so invested in the story that they forget they're actually reading words on a page and feel like they are actually watching this story unfold. 

"Said" works best for this purpose. 

Think about a movie or a TV show. When a scene is playing out on screen, you don't have a dialogue (unless, of course, you are watching with closed captioning on!). You just hear the characters speaking, saying the lines. "Said" is such an ordinary, honestly boring, term that readers will mostly skip over it at the end of the line of dialogue, especially if you are using it consistently since they have seen it so many times in the text already. The reader's eyes will see it, see which character's name it is accompanying, and move on. Because the word is so ordinary, though, the reader is unlikely to focus very much on it because it isn't fancy or eye-catching in any way. 

And that's the point! You want your reader to feel like they are watching this scene play out, like a movie in their head, not constantly be reminded that they are reading a piece of writing. Using a boring, basic word like "said" is the best way to accomplish this, to make sure your reader takes in who is speaking to keep the scene flowing, but doesn't focus so much on the word choice of the dialogue tag that they are reminded of the fact that they are reading and therefore pulled out of the scene. 

When you start to use more "writerly" alternatives to "said," they will become more noticeable. Your reader is then more likely to consciously take note of them as they read, and that breaks up the moment they are reading about in their head, because now their attention has been drawn back to reality--they are reading words printed on a page. Even if the reader is admiring your word choice, it still essentially pauses the scene to consciously consider it, and therefore, the scene stops flowing. 

"Said" is effective enough to do its job, but simple enough to keep the scene playing in the reader's head instead of constantly hitting the pause button. 

Example A:

    "You look wonderful tonight," George commented to his date nervously.

    "Thank you!" Sally exclaimed.

    "I'm really excited," George admitted. "I haven't been out in a while."

    "Oh," Sally grumbled. "Why's that?"

    "None of your business!" George snapped angrily. 

Not only are the dialogue tags in the example distracting, but they also break the golden rule of writing: show don't tell. A writer shouldn't have to (or want to!) clarify to their reader that George is admitting something or snapping angrily. They should be allowing readers to come to those conclusions on their own, based on the turn of the conversation. 

You can also show your characters' emotions better by describing their actions than by using a fancy alternative to "said" or attaching an adverb to the dialogue tag. This will also help set a slower pace to the conversations (if needs be), and reduce the number of dialogue tags that are actually necessary for the reader to keep track of the conversation. 

Example B:

    "You look wonderful tonight," George said. 

    "Thank you."

    "I'm really excited." George blushed. "I haven't been out in a while."

    "Oh." Sally suddenly looked away from him. "Why's that?"

    "None of your business!"

    George brushed forcefully past Sally and walked briskly ahead of her. 

In the above example, the lines of dialogue have not changed at all. However, the dialogue tags were either removed or replaced with quick bits of description of the characters' physical behavior during the conversation. It still effectively communicates the way that each character is feeling without having to spoon-feed it to the reader, allowing the reader to conclude that George is nervous because he's blushing, or that he becomes angry at Sally's question since he stormed rudely ahead of her. It also changed the pacing of the scene to make it feel like the conversation is happening less rapidly. It slightly minimizes the repetition of the characters' names, and it changes up the sentence structures. 

Just like any other writing "rule," though, there are always exceptions!

It is generally favorable to replace "said" with words like "whispered," "shouted," or "asked" as long as you are writing a scene where the character is actually whispering, yelling, or asking a question. Unless your reader is listening to the book on audio, there is no actual voice to accompany the dialogue, so the reader is at your mercy to understand how the characters are speaking. So, yes, if your character is whispering, you need to tell your reader that, otherwise there might not be a way to know!

Another thing to keep in mind is the fact that all "rules" of writing are made to be broken. If you are writing a scene, and you find a word to replace "said" with that you think is perfect and absolutely fits with what you're writing, then use it! At the end of the day, it is your work, and so it's up to you how you want it sound to your reader!