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deelaundryFor a fanfic ask game on Twitter, bironic selected: "Share a snippet from one of your favourite [sic]* dialogue scenes you've written and explain why you're proud of it."
I whined in reply because I LOVE writing dialogue scenes and I want to talk about them ALL. Nonetheless, below are just a few.
1) This example is actually epistolary monologue rather than dialogue. Deal with it.
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AutSciPerson a few days ago tweeted that
Which reminded me of a passage from This Is an Essay:
I'm not even sure if I'm proud, per se, of having written this; it simply needed to be written because it hadn't been expressed enough. Education and therapy for autistic children REALLY pushes the "you must identify and respect other people's emotions" idea, but then gives little to no credence to autistic children expressing their own emotions unless it's in an understated -- but still readable by neurotypicals! -- way. Strong expression of feelings (primarily showing you're upset, frustrated, or angry, but also showing happiness with stimming or raised voice) is shut down so fast.
2) When it comes to writing, I am not much of a self-editor. I very happily incorporate beta feedback, and corrections from readers who know more than I do about something, but on my own the first draft is usually pretty close to the last draft. SO, I'm quite proud of this dialogue from Contender because I edited to bring it more into character for Amber:
The original version was something like “I’ll go help your mother with dinner,” which is what most people would probably say; I'm proud I realized it was not what Amber would say.
3) The most frequent Additional Tag on my AO3 fics is "Dialogue-Only" (30, out of 216 fics or 14%). My fourth posted fic, The Registry was dialogue-only, and I'm tempted to post the whole damn thing because there's so much in there that I'm proud of, but let's go with the passage below, which I'm proud of for 1) showing the multi-layered conversations House and Wilson have, with humor and seriousness, and 2) the insight that House is sometimes abrasive because of his own emotional issues.
I've labeled House and Wilson for your convenience but I enjoyed the challenge of writing the fic so that the labels weren't necessary in context.
House and Wilson are at Bed Bath & Beyond making their commitment ceremony registry (this was before legal same-sex marriage).
Might do a Part Two to this at some point, but that's enough for now. :)
*Yes, this is a sic burn on Canadians and Europeans. U-S-A!
bironic selected: "Share a snippet from one of your favourite [sic]* dialogue scenes you've written and explain why you're proud of it." I whined in reply because I LOVE writing dialogue scenes and I want to talk about them ALL. Nonetheless, below are just a few.
1) This example is actually epistolary monologue rather than dialogue. Deal with it.
So much of autistic trauma is -
not being allowed to feel upset, frustrated, or angry,
feeling shame and guilt for being upset, frustrated, or angry,
being punished for being upset, frustrated, or angry.
Which reminded me of a passage from This Is an Essay:
Other people’s feelings are very, very, very, very important. Margaret has been told this all the time since she was a baby. ... There is also the case of strong feelings not being always important because calming down is the most important.
I'm not even sure if I'm proud, per se, of having written this; it simply needed to be written because it hadn't been expressed enough. Education and therapy for autistic children REALLY pushes the "you must identify and respect other people's emotions" idea, but then gives little to no credence to autistic children expressing their own emotions unless it's in an understated -- but still readable by neurotypicals! -- way. Strong expression of feelings (primarily showing you're upset, frustrated, or angry, but also showing happiness with stimming or raised voice) is shut down so fast.
2) When it comes to writing, I am not much of a self-editor. I very happily incorporate beta feedback, and corrections from readers who know more than I do about something, but on my own the first draft is usually pretty close to the last draft. SO, I'm quite proud of this dialogue from Contender because I edited to bring it more into character for Amber:
Wilson’s goofy smile makes House roll his eyes. Rookie move on Amber’s part – she obviously hasn’t yet realized that boosting Wilson’s ego can lead to no good.
“I’ll see what I can do to get dinner moving along,” Amber offers before planting a peck on Wilson’s cheek.
A brief “ka-shh, ka-shh” and flicking hand motion in Amber’s direction – universal signal for “you are so whipped” – gets House another glare from her. Yet another point scored! The bout is definitely his, although he regrets not getting a K.O.
“Maybe set the table? Mom’s been working all day on…” Wilson calls after Amber’s retreating form, until giving up.
“Your mother’s going to stab her with a boning knife,” House observes.
The original version was something like “I’ll go help your mother with dinner,” which is what most people would probably say; I'm proud I realized it was not what Amber would say.
3) The most frequent Additional Tag on my AO3 fics is "Dialogue-Only" (30, out of 216 fics or 14%). My fourth posted fic, The Registry was dialogue-only, and I'm tempted to post the whole damn thing because there's so much in there that I'm proud of, but let's go with the passage below, which I'm proud of for 1) showing the multi-layered conversations House and Wilson have, with humor and seriousness, and 2) the insight that House is sometimes abrasive because of his own emotional issues.
I've labeled House and Wilson for your convenience but I enjoyed the challenge of writing the fic so that the labels weren't necessary in context.
House and Wilson are at Bed Bath & Beyond making their commitment ceremony registry (this was before legal same-sex marriage).
House: And that person you're entangling your life with now, he's terrible. Drug addict, crippled, sarcastic, never a good word for anyone.
Wilson: He has compensating qualities.
House: Such as?
Wilson: He doesn't fish for compliments. Do you see a lemon zester?
...
Wilson (to BB&B cashier): He's mentally ill, so thank you for your patience.
House: Mental illness. We can add that to the list of your fiancé's bad qualities.
Wilson: Along with "tries to scare people away because real intimacy makes him nervous."
House: You want to have a heart-to-heart here in the parking lot?
Wilson: No. I want to go home and re-enact the shoe store incident. [This is a callback to an earlier recollection of them having sex in the backroom of a shoe store.]
House: Excellent idea. Good thing I saved the boxes our shoes came in.
Might do a Part Two to this at some point, but that's enough for now. :)
*Yes, this is a sic burn on Canadians and Europeans. U-S-A!