Writing Dialogue for Scripts

by Davis, Rib

• ISBN13: 9781474260077
• ISBN10: 1474260071
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2016-10-20
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Summary

A good story can easily be ruined by bad dialogue. Now in its 4th edition, Rib Davis's bestselling Writing Dialogue for Scripts provides expert insight into how dialogue works, what to look out for in everyday speech and how to use dialogue effectively in scripts. Examining practical examples from film, TV, theatre and radio, this book will help aspiring and professional writers alike perfect their skills.

The 4th edition of Writing Dialogue for Scripts includes: a look at recent films, such as American Hustle and Blue Jasmine; TV shows such as Mad Men and Peaky Blinders; and the award winning play, Ruined. Extended material on use of narration within scripts (for example in Peep Show) and dialogue in verbatim scripts (Alecky Blythe's London Road) also features.

Author Biography

Rib Davis has written over 60 scripts for screen, stage and radio over the course of a 30-year career. He is an award-winning playwright and has also worked as a script reader for both the BBC and the Arts Council of Great Britain.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Preface
Introduction
1. How Do We Talk?
2. The Characters' Agenda
3. Naturalistic Dialogue
4. Don't Make it Work Too Hard
5. Beyond the Literal
6. Heightened Naturalism
7. Tone, Pace and Conflict
8. Highly Stylised Dialogue
9. The Character Tells the Story
10. Comic Dialogue
11. Documentary Dialogue
12. Reworking the Dialogue
13. Last Words
Index