Writing Fundamentals: Dialogue
Details
Welcome, Austin Page Turners! This is the second meet up of a newly formed creative writing group open to writers of all levels and experience, where we focus on the fundamentals of writing fiction. Whether you write suspense, thrillers, horror, sci-fi, romantasy, or something entirely different, the basics of writing still apply to you.
The topic of February's meet up? Writing dialogue!
I am willing to bet beaucoup dollars that your current creative project probably involves two or more characters talking to each other, right? How can we use dialogue to drive the plot forward and reveal subtle details about our characters? How can we avoid flat and boring dialogue that sounds stilted?
Let's learn this important skill together with small group discussions, individual writing activities, and a couple of read alongs!
Schedule
- 7:00 - Arrive at Central Market Cafe, get settled, socialize, grab a drink or some food
- 7:15 - Small group discussion: discuss the recommended short stories and other questions provided by the host, moi, yours truly.
- 7:45 - Individual writing activity. Please bring the tools you normally use to write! Laptop, pen and paper, etc.
- 8:05 - Break! Socialize, use the restroom, grab another beverage.
- 8:15 - A second individual writing activity.
- 8:35 - Volunteers read aloud their work from the individual writing activities
- 8:50ish to close - Debrief
Recommended Reading
Not required to attend the meet up, but highly recommended. These short stories were selected for their use of dialogue.
- "Hills Like White Elephants" by Ernest Hemingway. (Format: PDF. The first six pages only)
- "The Beach Boy" by Ottessa Moshfegh (Format: Webpage, The New Yorker)
- "Fjord of Killary" by Kevin Barry (Format: Webpage, The New Yorker)