1. Listen to How People Talk.

Having a sense of natural speech patterns is essential to good dialogue. Start to pay attention to the expressions that people use
and the music of everyday conversation. This exercise asks you to do this more formally, but generally speaking it's helpful to
develop your ear by paying attention to the way people talk.

2. Not Exactly like Real Speech.

But dialogue should read like real speech. How do you accomplish that? Alfred Hitchcock said that a good story was "life, with the
dull parts taken out." This very much applies to dialogue. A transcription of a conversation would be completely boring to read. Edit
out the filler words and unessential dialogue — that is, the dialogue that doesn't contribute to the plot in some way.

3. Don't Provide Too Much Info at Once.

It should not be obvious to the reader that they're being fed important facts. Let the story unfold naturally. You don't have to tell
the reader everything up front, and you can trust him or her to remember details from earlier in the story.

4. Break Up Dialogue with Action.

Remind your reader that your characters are physical human beings by grounding their dialogue in the physical world. Physical
details also help break up the words on the page: long periods of dialogue are easier for the reader's eye when broken up
by description. (And vice versa, for that matter.) See the link above for examples of how this can work.

5. Don't Overdo Dialogue Tags.

Veering too much beyond "he said/she said" only draws attention to the tags — and you want the reader's attention centered on
your brilliant dialogue, not your ability to think of synonyms for "said."

6. Stereotypes, Profanity, and Slang.

Be aware of falling back on stereotypes, and use profanity and slang sparingly. All of these risk distracting or alienating your
reader. Anything that takes the reader out of the fictional world you're working so hard to create is not your friend. Read some
examples of how to achieve the tone you want without stereotypes, profanity, and slang.

7. Read Widely.
Pay attention to why things work or don't work. Where are you taken out of the story's action? Where did you stop believing in a
character? Or, alternatively, when did the character really jump off the page, and how did dialogue help accomplish that? You can
start reading like a writer with the link above, or pick up an anthology and start your own list of writers to learn from.

8. Punctuate Dialogue Correctly.

The rules for punctuating dialogue can be confusing: many writers need help getting them right in the beginning. Take some time
to learn the basics. A reader should get lost in your prose — not feel lost trying to follow your dialogue.

"So I think we should take Elm all the way to Lincoln," Mary said, the map spread across her lap.
"Is that really the best way?" Mel asked her. "What if we hit traffic?"
"But it's Sunday. We'll be fine."

There's no tension and nothing necessary is revealed here, so there's no reason to include this scene, though it is true to life.
Presumably, these characters are on their way to something important: why not fast-forward to those key scenes?

On the other hand, if the scene were to reveal something about Mel and Mary's relationship, something that mattered to the plot,
we would keep it:

"Why aren't we taking Elm?" Mary asked.

"Did I ask your opinion?" Mel said, switching lanes a bit too quickly. "When you drive, you can pick the route. But I'm driving, so I'll
pick the godd*@n route."
"Fine, fine," Mary said. With a sigh, she reached over to switch on the radio. "If you'd ever let me drive, then maybe I could," she
said under her breath.