Even though I edit a lot of fiction, I don’t write fiction, so I’m hesitant to write about dialogue. I was asked my thoughts on the topic, though. I suppose I should give some answers.
First, dialogue between two people means that several lines of dialogue can occur without mentioning either the character’s name or a pronoun – if the dialogue is between two members of the opposite sex – as well as a verb. Using “he” when the conversation is between two males achieves nothing, and neither does the repetitious use of the word “say” or its various tenses. If the dialogue is among three people or more, the characters’ names will need to be used more often unless it’s obvious who is speaking and who is replying to whom.
Second, “says” and “said” are dialogue’s default verbs. Many writers recommend using only those verbs. I agree with them, but I also suggest that a descriptive verb, used however rarely, can show emotion and create atmosphere. Because of that, I allow other verb forms as long as they aren’t used in a heavy-handed or repetitive manner. An overbearing aristocrat can only “demand” a certain number of times before he begins to sound like a worn-out record. The dialogue and interactions between the aristocrat and other characters must reflect the emotion that the word “demand” connotes; they can’t rest upon a single verb alone. They all have to do the work and work together to depict the scene and the characters.
Finally, dialogue must be written in tense. That is, the dialogue must agree with the verb tense used throughout the piece. The only exceptions are for conversations that are being recollected in a flashback, and, even then, the flashback may be written in the present tense because it is being remembered in the moment.
Fiction writers, what are your thoughts on dialogue? How do you avoid repetition of the annoying rather than clarifying or emotive sort when writing it?