More Than Just Talk

7 Exercises to Practice Mixing Dialogue and Description

⋙ Master the Fundamentals, Keep the Streak Alive ⋘
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Ever had one of those moments? The taxi driver is trying to talk to you in the back seat. Why do they keep looking at you in the rear view mirror? Shouldn’t they keep their eyes on the road?

We’re hardwired to interrogate faces. We expect conversation to contain more than words, and the taxi driver just wants to see your reaction. That’s why it’s so important not to fall into floating head syndrome when writing dialogue. Last week we looked at dialogue in isolation. Now we’re going to practice mixing dialogue with description.

This can be a tough task for the writer because your brain is juggling multiple contexts and perspectives. The narrator’s perspective is being mixed with each character’s POV. That’s why it’s common for writers to write dialogue separately, ten fill in the action. This week we’ll practice some strategies for mitigating the brain drain. Wouldn’t it be nice to just write freely and still manage all that context?

This Week’s 7 Streak Savers 🪦

Note: For paid subscribers I’ve added 3 additional exercises that can be used as Alternate Exercises.

⋙ Monday, Feb 24: Adding Gestures to Dialogue

Setup: One character is trying to explain something difficult to the other.

Goal: Write dialogue that uses gestures to reveal what the characters aren't saying directly.

Constraints:

• Write a few lines of pure dialogue first

• Edit to add one gesture or action after each line of dialogue

• Each gesture must either support or contradict what's being said

Modification: Increase the challenge by having the characters misunderstand each other.

Reflection: How did adding gestures change the meaning of the dialogue? Which gestures felt most impactful?

⋙ Tuesday, Feb 25: Layering Dialogue Over Action

Setup: Two characters are working together on a quiet task

Goal: Create contrast between what the characters are doing and what they're discussing.

Constraints:

• Write one paragraph describing the shared task

• Edit to add a few lines of dialogue about something unrelated

• Keep the action flowing between the dialogue

Reflection: How did the contrast between the dialogue and action affect the scene's mood?

⋙ Wednesday, Feb 26: Converting Dialogue to Action

Setup: Two characters need to coordinate on a complex task

Goal: Show coordination through a mix of dialogue and action, replacing unnecessary speech with description.

Constraints:

• Write the scene first as pure dialogue

• Have parts of the dialogue refer to actions and observations

• Replace some dialogue with descriptions of actions

• Keep only the speech that couldn't be shown through action

Reflection: Which moments worked better as action rather than dialogue? Why?

⋙ Thursday, Feb 27: Using the Zoom to Break Dialogue

Setup: Set an important conversation in a location with rich sensory details.

Goal: Break up dialogue naturally by shifting the narrative focus from close to wide and back again.

Constraints:

• Begin with focused dialogue

• Insert a paragraph that widens to show the full setting

• End by zooming in on one specific detail

Reflection: How did the changes in scale affect the dialogue's pacing and tension?

⋙ Friday, Feb 28: Breaking the Script

Setup: Choose a routine interaction with predictable “scripted” dialogue

Goal: Transform a routine exchange by weaving in observations that build to an unexpected moment.

Constraints:

• Start writing the expected script

• Pause to add distinct observations between exchanges

• End with a moment that breaks from the usual pattern

Modification: For more challenge, make the observations build on each other.

Reflection: How did the observations change the meaning of the routine dialogue?

⋙ Saturday, Mar 1: Weaving Past and Present

Setup: Two characters are in a place that reminds them of a shared memory.

Goal: Move smoothly between present conversation and past events while maintaining a clear sense of the current setting.

Constraints:

• Ground each shift to the past with a present detail

• Include three physical details that exist in both times

• Don’t lose track of either the past or present scene

Modification: For more challenge, make the present day conversation gradually reveal the importance of this memory.

Reflection: Which details most effectively linked the past and present moments?

⋙ Sunday, Mar 2: Summarizing Then Speaking

Setup: Characters are acting towards a goal while having an important conversation.

Goal: Drafting a scene with summarized dialogue, then selectively expand into speech.

Constraints:

• Write the scene first without any actual dialogue

• Treat the dialogue as summarized actions

• Read the scene and decide which summaries need to be expanded

• Replace select summaries with actual dialogue

Reflection: What made you choose to keep some dialogue summarized while expanding others?

3 Alternate Exercises 🫰 (Paid Content)