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Writing Subtext in Dialogue Scenes

The document provides a learning objective about incorporating subtext - what is said, meant, and intended - into dialogue scenes. It gives 5 scenario options for a 2-minute dialogue and instructs the writer to develop 2 character traits for each character and include subtext without addressing true intentions. Good writing features multi-layered dialogue where the words don't match characters' true thoughts, creating drama and mystery.

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30 views2 pages

Writing Subtext in Dialogue Scenes

The document provides a learning objective about incorporating subtext - what is said, meant, and intended - into dialogue scenes. It gives 5 scenario options for a 2-minute dialogue and instructs the writer to develop 2 character traits for each character and include subtext without addressing true intentions. Good writing features multi-layered dialogue where the words don't match characters' true thoughts, creating drama and mystery.

Uploaded by

pizzoh writer1
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Learning Objective

Real dialogue works on several levels - what a person is actually saying, what he wants and what he
really means. In this exercise, you will learn how to incorporate all three of these layers into the subtext of
the scene.
What You Need to Do
Choose one the following scenarios and write a two-minute dialogue scene between the characters. 

 Incorporate the scenario and subtext without actually addressing the characters’ true intentions.
 Develop two character traits for each character that are revealed through the dialogue, for example
maybe a character is afraid of being alone in life and loves white chocolate chip cookies.

1. Billy, 31, a successful engineer, encounters Eric,31, a former high school classmate and bully in the mall
for the first time since graduation.  Billy, still bitter about how Eric pushed him around in high school,
wants to find out what Eric is doing in life, hoping he’s a miserable failure, all while pretending to be a
polite, educated gentleman.
2. Kathy and Adrian are a 40-year old couple whose marriage is on the rocks.  It’s Saturday morning, and
Kathy suspects Adrian of cheating on her with another woman the night before.  The two are making
breakfast and without tipping Adrian off, Kathy wants to find out if her suspicions are correct.
3. Chad, 35, is an executive at a Fortune 500 company and is meeting with his boss, Brian.  Knowing that
the company is restructuring and laying off 100 employees, Chad is concerned his job may be one of
those cut.  In this scene, Chad is discussing a large sales conference coming up in three months with
Brian, trying to figure out if he will be participating.  If yes, then the chances are good that he will escape
this round of layoffs.
4. Stacey and Joel, 23 have been dating for a year, and Stacey is considering breaking up with Joel.  In this
scene, Stacey and Joel are at a party and into Brad, 25, a man to whom Stacey is immediately attracted. 
Stacey wants to let Brad know she likes him without clueing Joel in on the fact that she’ll be breaking up
with him soon.
5. Julie and Ellie, both 28, are roomates who just received an eviction notice.  Julie suspects that Ellie is
lying about paying the rent, because Ellie has been taking too much sick time off of work to deal with her
dying mother. Julie needs to find out about the rent without upsetting Ellie.

Conclusion
Most good writing features this multi-layered approach in which the words spoken by the characters
rarely match their true thoughts.  This verbal positioning between the characters not only makes for
outstanding drama, but keeps the audience guessing.
 How did writing for subtext change your approach to writing each scene?

 Did you find it easier to write dialogue when the characters had an underlying subtext?

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