by Rachael Phillips
Like all good little fiction
writers, we attend conferences, classes, and webinars that forbid us to pad the
narrative in our novels. Books and articles, too, shake a finger in our faces
and demand that we keep our descriptions lean, clean, and healthy, with only a small
dollop of adjectives to sweeten our offerings.
With all the caloric concern
about narrative, I’ve heard little about indulging in too much dialogue.
Except from my critique partner. She
pinpointed several scenes in my current novel—consisting mostly of dialogue—that
she believed served no purpose.
How about you? Have you ever had to put your dialogue on a diet?
I had to admit I encouraged my
characters to talk because I like to talk. We find each other fascinating
conversationalists. My partner, less than mesmerized, insisted our dialogue
should further the plot.
But that wasn’t all. She said my
last novel’s epilogue needed to shed some pounds. Half its weight, actually.
She was kidding, right? I agreed
that I’d set the action in three different scenes—too many for an epilogue. But
I’d crafted those last encounters between my characters to summarize the
camaraderie they’d experienced in my novel. I’d put rich words into their mouths
that readers would roll on their tongues for days afterward.
My partner complimented me on my wordsmithing. But she still
suggested I trim down the exchanges: “Seems like you’re taking awhile to wind
it up, like you don’t want to let go of the characters.”
Tell me, what right does a
critique partner have to be right?
After spending survival camp with
my characters for months, huddling at 4:30 a.m., interviewing them, arguing
with them, clobbering them, and rescuing them, I wanted to coffee klatch with my
buds one last time. So the dialogue ran on . . . and on . . . and on . . . .
Meanwhile, the future reader would no doubt give
up on the book, give in to weighty subliminal suggestions, and head for the
refrigerator.
How about you? Have you ever had to put your dialogue on a diet?
Yes and it involved cutting witty and wonderful characters too. They still live in my mind, even though they'll never see an audience. It's like touring Europe and only showing 3 photos in summary.
ReplyDeleteMary, What a great analogy! Exactly how I feel. Perhaps they will pop up in future novels, and reviewers will wonder why we didn't include them in the first place!
ReplyDeleteI do know what it's like to not want to say good by to a character. There are a few books and projects I look back on and wish I could visit again. This post was as delightful as all the others of yours I've read. I love reading Rachael Phillips!
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