My Top Ten Takeaways from Jill Marr's "Exposition versus Dialogue" Presentation

One area I try to improve on in my fiction is hitting the right balance between exposition and dialogue.

So I was thrilled to listen to literary agent Jill Marr's suggestions on how to do that during her "Exposition versus Dialogue" presentation at the All Write Now! Conference.

Here are the ten takeaways I plan to focus on from list she discussed: 

* Write it down then go back over the telling part and change to show.

* Start as late as you can in the plot.

* Lock up back story and let out only when needed.

* Don’t have two characters talking about what they already know.

* Don’t use quotes on an entire page.

* Fold exposition in like eggs into a batter.

* Don’t give up great heaps of information.

* Dialogue has to ring true.

         
* Use italics for interior dialogue.

* Don't use he said/she said if it's obvious who is speaking.

How about you: Do you find any of the above suggestions helpful when writing fiction? 

CCMWG's Write Direction Conference 2014

The Columbia Chapter of the Missouri Writers' Guild will hold its annual  "Write Direction" conference on Saturday, October 18, 2014, from 8:30-4:00 at the Unity Center, 1600 W. Broadway in Columbia, MO. 

Early-bird registration (by Sep 26) is only $35 for CCMWG members and $40 for non-members. 

Registration includes:

* Choice of break-out sessions,

* Sales/exhibition space in author’s hall,

* Breakfast snacks, lunch, afternoon tea

Keynote speaker Terry Allen will talk about "Writing Dialogue" and "Writing in Shadows and Fog." Dr. Allen is Professor Emeritus of Theatre Arts from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire who taught courses in playwriting, directing, acting, stage movement, theatre history, theatre of the Holocaust, and American cinema for thirty-four years. 

Alan Proctor: "Submitting your Poetry: What Poetry Editors Want." Alan Proctor is a poetry editor for Kansas City Voices, a former humor columnist, tree surgeon, Vice President of a public university and classical guitarist. 

Mary Horner: "Write like a pro to sell your nonfiction writing." Mary is the author of Strengthen Your Nonfiction Writing, a guide to help you write like a professional. She teaches communications at St. Louis and St. Charles Community Colleges. 

Linda Rodriguez: "Riding the Tiger: Writing and Publishing Novels with a Big Five Publisher in a Chaotic Time of Transition."  Linda Rodriguez’s third Skeet Bannion novel, Every Hidden Fear (St. Martin’s/Minotaur), will be published May 5, 2014. 

Mary-Lane Kamberg: “What’s So Funny?” Put your sense of humor on paper. Her workshop includes practical advice for using humor in poetry and following the narrative form for humorous essays. Mary is a professional writer with more than twenty years’ experience. She is the author of 27 books. Her articles have appeared in Better Homes and Gardens, Marriage and Family Living, Christian Science Monitor, Healthy Kids and many others.

Gerado Mena:  "Unleashing your Inner Voice." His workshop includes generating material, sifting, and creating poems using modern structural techniques. War Poetry: (Closing Session) Iraq.  In this workshop he will read from his poetry book The Shape of Our Faces No Longer Matters and will share his journey from a head full of bad memories to a book of war poems. Gerardo Mena is a decorated Iraqi Freedom veteran. He spent six years in Spec Ops with the Reconnaissance Marines and was awarded a Navy Achievement Medal with a V for Valor for multiple acts of bravery.  His poetry and essays have appeared in The New York Times, Ploughshares, Best New Poets 2011, Ninth Letter, and elsewhere.

For complete details, visit the CCMWG site.

It's a Noun, It's a Verb . . . It's Di-a-logue

Dialogue: now there's a word that strikes fear into the hearts of fiction writers - well maybe not all fiction writers, but a lot of them, and me for sure.

I'm talking about dialogue as a noun. "Wow! That's realistic dialogue you used in your story," not as a verb as in "Let's dialogue about that." In contests I've judged, some writers have a good ear for dialogue, others struggle. I took me awhile to write dialogue that sounds like a real conversation, but I think I've finally grasped the concept and recognize good dialogue.

The other day I was excited to read a post on Janet Fitch's blog, "A Few Thoughts About Dialogue." I've read a lot of advice about writing dialogue, but one of Janet's comments hit me like a bolt of lightning. Sorry for the cliche, but I have lightning on my mind after the thunderstorm that whipped through this morning around three a.m. and caused me to bolt from my bed.

Back to dialogue. Here's what caught my attention: "Dialogue is only for conflict." That makes total sense. Other helpful suggestions from Janet are: keep it short, no meet and greet, and gestures are as important as what is said. Click here to read the complete post.

Other cool features on Janet's blog are her word stories and exercises, where she creates short, short stories using a word as a prompt. Very creative and challenging! Check it out and be amazed.

P.S. Tomorrow I will have a post from a guest blogger. Cindy Allen is a poet, a pilot, a polo player, and a pioneer. She is a board member of Saturday Writers who judged one of our monthly contests using a strawberry pie recipe. So, I hope you'll visit tomorrow to see what Cindy has to say.

P.P. S. The Cards redeemed themselves by winning 8-3 last night, so I'm in a double good mood today. Since they scored at least six runs it means drinks for a quarter at Mobil on the Run. The grandkiddos love their slushies!