So I wrote a book about how I wrote my books. In it, I covered things like lore, character development, dialog, and planning. I thought, what if I showed some of my chapters here.
What you'll find below is one of the chapters from my book "How I wrote my books, And you can too." I hope it helps someone, but I'll understand if no one bothers to read it. Still, if you do read it and get anything from it, I'd ask that you let me know. Also, feel free to check out some of my books and see how I used some of my advice to put together my work.
https://tapas.io/11keys/series
Chapter 6- Dialog
When writing dialogue, dont worry about making things sound witty. Dont worry about making things sound cool. It doesn't matter if it sounds natural or real, not yet. What matters most is the substance.
A conversation needs 3 things before you worry about making it fancy.
Motive-
Why are your characters having a conversation? What are they trying to learn gain, explain or inform through speaking? Motives don't need to be complicated, but there has to be one.
Exchange-
What information is being exchanged? Or in some cases, what information isn't being exchanged? If someone is speaking it should be with Purpose.
Movement-
A conversation often leads to action. When new information is exchanged it can be enough to change motivations, or strengthen them. Conversations have to move the story forward.
When your dialogue has these three things, you can move on to giving it color so what your characters say starts to fit who they are. Characters speak differently in varying contexts. No two people have the same vocabularies. Some have favorite words, others don't. Some people curse a lot while others are afraid to be offensive.
For example:
Yes vs yeah
A young person is more likely to say "yeah," while an older person is more likely to say "yes."
This is only one example of a simple word difference that can speak volumes.
Take into consideration who characters are speaking to. People are more likely to use casual language when talking to a friend or family member. But some people will change their use of vocabulary, tone, and directness if they're speaking to a person of higher authority. An individual might speak differently when they're having conversations with older or younger people.
Remember your characters are not you, so you have to make an effort to differentiate them from yourself and even more so from one another. Always remember who your characters are as people, because chances are they are more than willing to say things you never would.
Lastly, don't over use slang and pop culture references, they date your writing and alienate readers who don't know what your talking about.