Dialogue Writing

Dialogue writing is the writing of a conversation between two or more people.

What is Dialogue ?
Roots of word dialogue - Dia + Logos Dia means "through" Logos means "words"

Types of Dialogues:
(a) Formal Dialogue
Dialogue between a teacher and the student
Dialogue between an employer and employee

(b) Informal Dialogues

Dialogue between two friends

(c) Semi-formal Dialogues

Dialogue between parents and the child
Dialogue between colleagues

Importance of Dialogue Writing: Why is dialogue writing an important skill?

Good dialogues attracts the reader.
The reader gets more involved in the story
Similarly, a bad dialogue takes away all the interest of the reader.
The reader would prefer to close the book rather than reading it

Rules to Follow
Understand the topic well.
Have a proper beginning - Begin with a proper salutation.
Read the dialogue outloud first
Understand the type of situation it is and accordingly portray it in the tone of the dialogues.
Make each character sound distinct
Each dialogue should be there for a reason, it should drive the story forward
Use of tenses must be according to the dialogues
Keep subject-verb agreement in mind
Use relevant and interesting words.
Use contractions instead of the expanded versions.
For Example: I am - I'm Do not Don't They have - They've Should not - Shouldn't
Keep your dialogue brief and impactful.
Always remember the character while writing the dialogue respectively.
Don't make it confusing for the reader
A good dialogue is well punctuated
Always have a proper ending of the dialogues

Format of Dialogues Writing:

New paragraph for every speaker.
To show that a new speaker is speaking, the paragraph is changed.

For Example: "Are you going to the market?"

Rahul asked. "Yes, I have to go for shopping", said Madhu.

"Are you going to the market?" Rahul asked.

"Yes, I have to go for shopping", said Madhu
Punctuation must be inside the quotation marks.
Punctuation mark - Symbol used to show how a sentence must be read and to make it clear.
For example, full stop, comma, question mark etc are punctuation marks.

Quotation mark - ("----") is used to quote a speech.

For Example: Pooja said, "I'm not fond of music."

Use single quotes if the person is quoting someone.

For Example: Radha told me, "Tanuj said, 'The dress from the mall is outdated.’”

Dialogue tag goes outside the quotation

Dialogue tag is used to indicate which character is speaking.
For Example: Charu asked, "Where is Seema studying?"

Em dashes (-) indicate interruptions.

For Example:"Look over there -" "What a beautiful view!"

No additional punctuation is added while using ellipses (...).

Ellipses are three dots (...).
Ellipses are used in dialogues to show a pause or sudden break.

For Example:
"Do you know any good place here?" he asked.
"Let me think... the best place here is ABC bridge,” I said.

Essentials of a good dialogue:

Students are expected to write around 10 to 15 conversational sentences in one dialogue writing question.

Follow a proper structure. Do not write the dialogue below the sayer's name, like
XYZ: Hi! I am XYZ. I live in Vaghodia.
Its a nice place.

Instead, one should write:

XYZ: Hi! I am XYZ. I live in Vaghodia.
Its a nice place.

Do not write your real name. Use pen names or the names given in the dialogue.

Start the conversation by asking about the whereabouts of the other person and end it on a good note, like
'good-bye' or so.

In case of an argument, always bring a conclusion in which both the parties end up bring a common solu-
tion/conclusion, before you end your dialogue.

Write a dialogue between a girl seeking information to join a language course in her summer vaca-
tion and the course co-ordinator of a language institute.

Sameera: Good morning. I am Sameera Kapoor. I would like to have some information.
Ms. Smith Good morning Sameera. How may I help you?
Sameera : I have recently completed my Class 10 examination and I want to take up some language
course during the vacation.
Ms. Smith That's great. Are you looking for some course in particular?
Sameera : Yes, I am interested in learning French. Do you offer this language course?
Ms. Smith: Yes, of course. We have French language course for beginners commencing from Monday
1st April 20XX. We have only few seats left.
Sameera : That's great! What is the course fee and how do I pay?
Ms. Smith: The course fee is 6000/- for 20 sessions from Monday through Friday.
Sameera : Thank you so much ma'am. I will speak to my parents and get back to you.

You are Nitin. You visited your village in vacation and were fascinated by the village life. However,
your friend Ritesh feels city life is much better than village life. Write a dialogue between you and
Rithesh where in you share your experience of village life and Ritesh counter-argues about the fun of
living in a city.

Ritesh Hi Nitin, how are you? When did you come back from your village?
Nitin : Hello Ritesh. I am fine, thank you. I came last weekend, though I didn't want to come back. Ritesh:
Why?
Nitin : I just loved being in my village. I find everything quite special there like the farms, streams,
river, wells, mango trees and much more
Ritesh: I agree one is very close to nature in villages. You open your eyes to the bright sun shining
over your head and close your eyes to the millions of twinkling stars. But I prefer city life. Nitin :
Honestly, I find nothing great about city life. Everyone is just running around. People have no
time for each other.
Ritesh: That is called a busy life, Nitin. Everyone has some purpose. They want to achieve something
in life. They have their goals, their aspirations.
Nitin : I agree Ritesh. But what is the point when you don't get time for yourself or your family. In
villages, farmers work from morning to evening in their farm and then spend quality time
with family as well as socialize with others. Also, the life is calm and pollution free.
Ritesh: Yes I second your opinion on that. Village life is pollution free with fresh air to breathe and
fresh food to eat. However, I like the busyness and fast pace of the cities. So, probably we
should end this conversation before it turns into an argument.
Nitin : You are right Ritesh. I will have to leave now as I have to attend my football class.
Ritesh Okay. Bye Nitin. See you soon.
Nitin : See you. Bye.

Peter and John visit the same park every evening. They don't know each other, though. Write a dia-
logue between these two strangers in a public park.

Peter : Hey. Good morning. You have a beautiful dog! What breed is it?
John : Very good morning. Thank you! It's a Dalmatian.
Peter : It must be really difficult to handle such a big dog.
John : Yes it's a tough job. This breed is respected and admired all over the world due to its strength
and loyalty. He is my best friend and companion.
Peter I love pets myself. What's his name?
John : His name is Snowy, inspired by the famous comic series...
Peter : Tintin! Of course! It was my favourite show as a child.
John : My Snowy is also a very smart dog. He knows how to shake your hand with his paw. By the
way, I'm John. It is a pleasure meeting you.
Peter I am Peter. Nice to meet you too. This garden is such a peaceful place.
John : True. I agree. It's a very positive place to start your day in
Peter : Got to go now. Had a nice time talking with you, Peter. See you soon.
John : Yes! I enjoyed myself, too. Even I need to go now. 'Bye, John. See you tomorrow morning

Write a dialogue between bank official and customer who wants to open a saving account

Customer : Good morning

Bank official : Good morning Sir. How may I help you?
Customer : I wanted to know the procedure for opening a savings bank account.
Bank official : Sure Sir. You will have to fill up this form and provide all the details as mentioned in
the form. Submit your form with one photo-ld, your Aadhar card, your PAN card, your
residence proof and three passport-sized photographs.
Customer : OK! I will arrange the documents but, I will not be able to come again with documents as I
 work during banking hours.
Bank official: Don't worry, Sir. Our bank official will come to collect the form and documents along
with the minimum balance cheque from your place at your convenient time.
Customer: Thank you. That would be really great. In that case, I will call at the bank when my form
and documents are ready.
Bank official: Thank you for choosing our bank to open your saving account. Here is my card. You can
call me on this number to get your documents collected.
Bank official : That's nice. Thank you so much for your support. I will soon call you. Have a
good day.

Mother is quite upset with Isha as she always prefers junk food over healthy food. She decides to
talk with her. Write a dialogue between Isha and her mother discussing the advantages of healthy
food over junk food.

Isha : Hello mummy. How was your day at work?

Mother: It was good as usual. How about you? Did you have the lunch I cooked for you?
Isha : I had my lunch, mom. But not what you cooked. I ordered online.
Mother : Again outside food? I am worried about your health dear. Your diet consists of more junk
food than healthy food.
Isha : Mom, but I eat vegetables, lentils and pulses too.
Mother: That's what you think dear. Last week, you ate pizza twice, pasta, and noodles too. Such food
is very harmful for our digestive system and it invites all kinds of diseases.
Isha : Come on mom! All my friends eat a lot of junk food. We call one of our friends "Junk food
queen". I don't overeat as much as she does.
Isha : Mom, I understand what you are trying to say. But it's tastier compared to healthy food and
more tempting too.
Mother: All that is good for health is not necessarily tasty too. But we have to understand and
differentiate between good and bad food.
Isha : You are right mom. OK! I promise I will eat junk food twice a month only. Once it will be
cooked by you and the second time, it will be dinner either with friends or family.
Mother: Deal! I agree to your proposal. However, your quota of eating junk is over this month.
Isha : OK mom. As you say.