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I finally gave in and wrote a scene using only dialogue, no tags or descriptions at all
I always thought those minimalist style prompts were just lazy writing, but after reading a published short story that did the same thing, I could not believe how much tension and character came through without a single 'he said' or 'she sighed', so has anyone else here been converted on a writing rule they initially hated?
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amy1541mo ago
Oh man, that piper912 comment got me thinking - they're right that twelve pages is a lot, but I wonder if the issue was more about the writing itself rather than the format? Like, was the dialogue actually good, or was it just a gimmick? Because I read this one scene where two characters were fighting in a car and the only clue you got about who was talking was their word choice and rhythm - one used short clipped sentences, the other rambled. That worked way better than any "she snapped" or "he growled" could. But I've also read pure dialogue that felt like reading a transcript of my grandparents arguing about nothing. So my question is - for folks who have tried this style, did you find yourself having to rewrite the dialogue a bunch of times to get the voices distinct enough, or was it more about cutting out description and letting the words carry the weight?
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piper9121mo ago
12 pages of straight dialogue in one collection I read. Got exhausting fast. My eyes started skipping lines trying to find who was talking. Sometimes you need a little description to ground the reader, even if it's just "he paused" or "she looked away." Pure dialogue can work in short bursts but a whole scene feels like listening to a radio with bad reception.
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