'All talk and no action' - How I craft dialogue-heavy scenes.

Dialogue can make or break a story. When done well, it can pull you in, reveal important character details and build tension. When done poorly, it can feel forced, slow the pace, and completely lose your interest. In today's blog, I wanted to share the tips and tricks I use to write my dialogue-heavy scenes.

A Quick Update (about my novel):

The quick answer is NO, I have not published my debut psychological thriller - yet. But it has been a monumental few months.

Recap: Once I finished my book, and the second draft, and the third... I hired four beta readers to professionally critique my work. After that, I started the process of querying literary agents. All I wanted was for one agent to request the full manuscript. If you want to find out more about what traditional publishing is -

Another Blog...

Update: I'm happy to share that I have received multiple full requests from UK and USA agents. A feat I once thought impossible. I received a reply recently in which an agent told me they 'loved my book'. Happiest. Day. Ever. Hopefully, there will be more news to come soon.

Why Dialogue Matters

Thrillers thrive on suspense, conflict, and psychological depth. Dialogue is a key tool to deliver all three. It reveals what characters want, hides what they fear, and exposes their secrets.

Good dialogue:

• Advances the plot without info-dumping

• Reveals character motivations and relationships

• Builds suspense through subtext and pacing

• Feels authentic to each character’s voice

  
  

Poor dialogue often sounds like an author explaining the story or characters talking in clichés. It can stall momentum and frustrate readers.

So without further ado, here are my Top Six Tips for Writing Dialogue-Heavy Scenes.

1. Use Interruptions and Overlapping Speech

I like throwing in realistic scenarios. People cut each other off all the time. Well, at least they do in Scotland... Real conversations are rarely neat and orderly. Characters may trail off or be interrupted by something other than a person. Using these techniques enhances the authenticity of dialogue and can also be used to create tension in a scene.

Example:

'You don’t understand-'

'No, you don’t understand! I’m telling you, he’s lying.'

'Just listen-'

'I’m not listening anymore.'

2. Shared History

   
   

Unless your characters are newborn babies, they have a past. I like to place inside jokes or references to a previous shared experience in my dialogue. You can either fill the reader in on the past or leave it open to interpretation.

3. Balance Dialogue with Action and Description

   
   

Include brief actions or descriptions to ground the conversation in the world around your characters. This can be a character’s nervous gesture, a setting detail, or a change in tone. It breaks up dialogue and adds atmosphere.

Example:

I slammed my fist on the table, 'You’re lying!'

'Am I?' he smiled coldly, leaning back.

"Real" dialogue is flawed.

4. Inner Dialogue Matters

When writing in first-person, our inner dialogue continues to run. I like to use my protagonist's thoughts to craft scenes in which not everything needs to be spelt out. In thrillers, what characters don’t say often matters more than what they do.

5. Body Language

   
   

People communicate with much more than words. If you've ever visited a foreign country and tried to interact, you know how far gestures and expressions can take you without uttering a single word. Facial expressions, gestures, and body language add layers of subtext to dialogue, enriching scenes without requiring spoken language.

6. Most Importantly - Know Your Characters Inside Out

My characters all have different ways of speaking, phrases and tones they speak in. Some have distinct colloquialisms, and writing in the character's voice is so incredibly important to help differentiate between characters without repeatedly naming them in scenes.

Final Thoughts

Writing dialogue that feels natural and keeps readers engaged takes practice and attention to detail. Who's to say mine is any good yet anyway?! But honestly, one last tip - try reading your dialogue aloud and balancing it with action to maintain pace and atmosphere. With these techniques, your thriller’s conversations will pull readers deeper into the story and heighten the suspense.

Keep writing, keep revising, and watch your dialogue improve with every single draft.