By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills

Writing effective dialogue means being true to our premise, theme, setting, characters, and genre. Let’s examine the guidelines and characteristics for popular genres.

Romance

The story is about two people who are romantically involved. The plot focus is love—the characters must overcome differences, obstacles, and make sacrifices for the novel to end in a satisfying, happily ever after love relationship.

The dialogue is poetic and filled with metaphors and similes as the characters search for ways to describe their love and emotions outwardly and inwardly. The character’s journey through a contemporary setting and see the world in unexpected beauty.

Writers pair romance with many genres to add an extra thread to the plot and deepen characterization, such as historical romance and romantic suspense.

Historical

In historical fiction, the plot and setting take place no less than fifty years before the current time. The mood and tone of the story reflect culture, language, religion, historical period, social mannerisms, health problems, government control, and concerns of the people.

Stories written before the twentieth century, the characters often spoke with more of an artful expression. The dialogue reflects the language of the era, social norms, living conditions, education, and other qualifying factors. People lived a slower pace and took pride in their oral and written language—usually more formal, eloquent, and polite. Contractions were not used, but an exception would be a character who is uneducated. I caution the writer to leave some contractions for the contemporary reader’s ear. Regional expressions determine word choices.

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Fantasy

In a fantasy novel, the setting or story world is imaginary and mirrors a medieval universe. Quests, culture, magic, adventure, strange creatures, unrealistic circumstances, and social norms are at the whim of the writer. The supernatural makes the impossible possible but without technology.

Dialogue consists of invented words and like romance, the characters often sound poetic. The writer who creates a language for the fantasy inhabitants frequently explores legends and mythology from the Romans, Greek, Celtics, Far Eastern Lore, and/or a mixture to form specific words. Develop the story world and language for a glossary. Informing the readers of story specifics makes it easier for them to enjoy the adventure.

Mystery, Suspense, and Thriller

These three genres are similar but with distinct differences.

A mystery involves a crime to solve. Usually, the main character is a detective or private eye who works throughout the story to find clues and solve a crime. A subgenre is the cozy mystery which has the violence occur in backstory or not visible to the reader. An amateur sleuth solves the crime.

A suspense builds anticipation for what will happen next. Many times, the protagonist battles a ticking clock which increases the tension. The writer uses apprehension and employs hold-your-breath excitement for what will happen next. High stakes, fast pacing, unexpected twists and turns, and red herrings add to the story’s appeal.

Thrillers are suspense novels taken to the next level. These stories are darker, and the high stakes have a deadly or catastrophic effect on many people. Fast pacing and fear play a large role in advancing the mood of this genre.

Dialogue for mystery, suspense, and thrillers rely on the characters’ background and story setting. If the protagonist’s career is in law enforcement, research the appropriate agency to learn jargon, training, specifics, home and family life, agency guidelines, and career expectations. Also investigate the setting because word choices and meanings differ from region to region. Interview a person in your character’s line of work. A hero doesn’t have to work for a federal or local law enforcement agency, but the character must have the skills and wisdom to overcome the enemy.

Science Fiction

In a sci-fi novel, the imaginary world is futuristic and uses technology beyond our current capabilities. The writer stretches scientific theories and principles to engage characters in plot and setting. World building is varied but all create environments based on life beyond the planet earth as we know it.

Dialogue develops much like a contemporary novel with the criteria of a technology-advanced world in a surreal setting. Many writers establish a glossary of definitions, names, and places to root the reader in the story.

Other Popular Genres

These stories require specific dialogue for the characters to remain true to their story: horror, western, young adult, dystopian, women’s fiction, biblical fiction, action/adventure, and the list goes on with sub-genre categories.

Four tips for authentic genre dialogue:

1. Read several books in the genre. Note rhythm, setting, word choice, emotion, and characterization.
2. Read the dialogue aloud or use text-to voice software.
3. Know the characters and ascribe patterns of verbal and nonverbal communication.
4. Study movies and films.

Our genre determines speech patterns for characters to communicate while striving to achieve a goal. Writers create unpredictable dialogue readers won’t forget. How do you choose dialogue for your genre?

DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She weaves memorable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels. DiAnn believes every breath of life is someone’s story, so why not capture those moments and create a thrilling adventure?

Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards, the Golden Scroll, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests.

DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, an active member of the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers, Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Mystery Writers of America, the Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. DiAnn continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country.

DiAnn has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.

DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Goodreads, BookBub, YouTube, LinkedIn. or her website: diannmills.com