Month: November 2021

This writing prompt/ story prompt takes the form of a picture.

Here’s what you do: Take your phone, open your photos app and scroll fast so you can’t see what the pictures are. Then stop abruptly on one photo. Whatever it is, use it as a prompt to get you writing. It doesn’t have to be a whole story, it can just be a quick writing exercise.

Here’s some ideas to get you going…

1. Describe the scene in the picture using first one paragraph, then one sentence, then just one word.

2. Write a short piece, even if it's just a sentence or paragraph, about what you think about the pictured scene. Remember when you were there, assuming you were, or imagine you were there, and write about how you felt/would feel.

3. If there are people or animals in the photo, describe what's happening from the viewpoint of one of the people, then from the perspective of a different person or animal. Remember, the people or animals in the photo might be able to see you taking the photo, how does that change their impression of the scene?

4. If you have a novel, or any other work in progress at the moment, take your main character and place them in the scene of the photo. Write about what they see, hear, smell, and what they think about the scene - it'll help you get to know your character better. Who knows, they might end up reminiscing about the memory of the scene in the photo to another character in your book. 

5. If you don't have a phone, use a magazine, or newspaper, or the internet for pictures instead. The point is not to spend ages finding a picture you think you can write about... yes I know we're all tempted to do that! But make yourself write something about whatever picture you get. REMEMBER, it only has to be one word to start with. I'm often surprised how one word leads to the next and before you know it, you're writing something new and totally unexpected.

If you’re REALLY stuck, here’s the picture I stopped on from my phone…

I snapped this when I was out in London a few weeks ago. It was a grey and rainy day, which made the vibrant colours even more amazing. I find street scenes are great for inspiration, as there are lots of people to pick out and give a back story.

Who is the lady with the lovely pink umbrella? Where is she going?

Who lives in the warmly-lit windows of the building on the right? What’s happening in their lives?

Is someone in the restaurant on the left waiting to meet a date? Or someone they haven’t seen for years? Imagine them looking out at the street, what are they thinking? How are they feeling? Are they about to witness a crime? Or commit one?!

There are so many possibilities with just a simple photo, so have a go and see what you come up with.

I’d love to read any snippets that spring from this writing prompt/ story prompt, so feel free to post them in the comments.

Happy writing!

Do you know how to write great dialogue? Do you worry that your dialogue isn’t realistic? Or exciting enough? You are definitely not alone! Most writers struggle with dialogue at some point in a project. I find this well-meant quote can cause some of the problems…

“People talk in half-sentences, and say ‘um’ and ‘er’ all the time, but you can’t write dialogue like that, it’s too confusing.”

I’ve heard this said so many times, but personally I don’t believe it’s so clear-cut. Whilst I agree that dialogue constantly peppered with ‘ums’ and ‘ers’, or comprising many part-sentences, would be distracting to read, that doesn’t mean you can’t ever write them into your dialogue.

How to Write Delaying Phrases in Dialogue

Let’s take ‘ums’ and ‘ers’ first. These are delaying phrases people use frequently in speech, to fill the dreaded silence whilst we think of what to say next. They don’t often denote anything particularly interesting, which is why many writers advise eliminating them altogether.

But, sometimes the delay in speaking is due to an emotional state, such as fear, sadness or embarrassment. In these cases, I would advocate including them sparingly in dialogue. They help illustrate a character’s emotional state without you having to spell it out. Then you don’t need any often-frowned-upon adjectives with your dialogue tags, like ‘she said sadly’, for example.

How to Write Dialogue that improves your characterisation

Now let’s consider part sentences, where a character starts a sentence one way, then switches to expressing it a different way. I think this aspect of dialogue works best when confined to a particular character. It helps a character stand out if they have a distinctive speech pattern. However, make sure this style of speech is realistic for the character’s personality and job. A person in a position of authority, like a police officer, would struggle to command people if they didn’t sound sure of what they wanted to say.

Make your book into a movie (in your head!)

Finally, try to imagine your book or short story as scene in a film or television programme. Once you get to know your characters, you should be able to ‘see’ them in your mind’s eye. Imagine them walking into the scene and try to ‘hear’ them speaking to each other. Listen to how the dialogue sounds in your head and ask yourself if it seems like what your characters would say. Cast some of your favourite actors in the roles if that helps! If you find it hard to imagine your scenes and hear the dialogue, read it out loud. Even reading aloud to yourself will help you hear how realistic it sounds, but better yet, read it to someone else and ask them what they think. Getting feedback on your work is so useful, so check out my offer below…

Get Feedback to make your Dialogue Great!

Everybody needs feedback, whether from beta readers or professional editors, both are hugely valuable. And as a writer you’ll know you often have to pay to get feedback on your work. I’d love to help out anyone who wants a second opinion by offering this for free. So, if you post an excerpt of your writing that contains dialogue in the comments, I’ll give you my thoughts as a reader.

And if you have your own tips for writing great dialogue, I can’t wait to hear them. Go ahead and share them with me, and other writers, in the comments.

Happy writing!