by Susanne Barringer
Dialogue can make or break a story. Trying to get Mulder and Scully to sound like Mulder and Scully is the main challenge. If readers can hear them delivering the lines you've written, then you've done your job.
So what do Mulder and Scully sound like? Pick out a few of your favorite X-Files episodes and watch them again (big chore, huh? ). This time, pay attention to the way Mulder and Scully talk, to each other in particular. No, don't get distracted by the way they look at each other. And don't let your attention wander to all the UST! Just listen.Close your eyes if that MulderBulge is too distracting.
How do they talk? In mostly short sentences or long rambling paragraphs? How often do they interrupt each other? How casual is their language and their sentence structure? Have you ever noticed how often they say each other's names? Scully especially--count how many times she says "Mulder" in one ep. :)(This is actually rather convenient since you can use it to show who's speaking without using "Scully said" all the time).
The fun thing about writing dialogue is that it's not as stuffy as narrative. People don't always talk in complete sentences. They don't always finish their thoughts. They start and stop, sometimes shift gears suddenly. They use contractions. Basically, they do a whole lot of things your English teachers told you not to do in writing.
Write dialogue the way people actually talk, not the way they're supposed to. This is not an excuse, however, to turn Scully into a Valley Girl. "Like, fer sure, Mulder, I so totally think you're bitchin' to the max. Skinner is just so grodie. Like, that dude needs to loosen up. I mean, he's got the bod, but the 'tude on that guy? Fer sure. "
Both Mulder and Scully speak rather formally, even for television characters (who already tend to be more formal than most of us in our daily lives). How often does Scully use slang? When was the last time you heard Mulder say "gonna," "wanna," or "hafta"?
The big test. Can you hear Gillian or David deliver the line you just wrote? I don't mean what you *want* them to say, but what you can actually hear them saying in their unique way with their unique speech patterns. If you can't hear it, neither will your readers.
A very wise woman (i. e. my beta reader) once told me that any piece of dialogue could sound convincingly Mulder and Scully in the right context. Though I'm sure there are exceptions, the wise part of her point is that dialogue does not exist in a vacuum. Use the surrounding circumstances and the characters themselves to make your dialogue sound plausible. Maybe it's not something Mulder would say under normal circumstances, but when Scully's got him in the thumb screws, you have more latitude. Much of the great dialogue out there in fanfic land might seem out of character on its own or even on the show, but the author draws the scene so perfectly that suddenly it all seems right.
Since dialogue only tells us what people are saying, it only gives us half the picture. It's important to fill out the dialogue with narrative or description. That gives your reader a picture to go with the words, which is necessary in writing. Such description can also allow you to give clues about how the involved parties are reacting to the words, even without telling us their thoughts directly.
People do things while they talk. They fidget, they get distracted, they have facial expressions. It's the old "Show, don't tell" advice for writing. Show us what's happening during the conversation.
If Mulder and Scully are having a conversation over dinner, for example, what's going on while they're talking? When is Mulder's mouth full at an inopportune time? When does Scully take a sip of her iced tea in order to avoid responding to Mulder's lame innuendo? At what point does Mulder get frustrated enough to stab his fork into his baked potato?
After you’ve created your conversation, read your dialogue aloud. Pretend your dog is Mulder and you're Scully. When you're saying the words, do they sound forced or unnatural? Too formal? More like you than like Scully? Is your dog listening?
Finally, read authors who are known for their great dialogue and watch how they do it. I’d recommend Barbara D. (especially “Stakeout Through the Heart”), Suzanne Schramm (especially “Dividends”), and Terma99.
