Screenwriting : Writing dialogue on the first draft or during the rewrites? by Christopher J. Bounds

I write dialogue during the first draft, Christopher J. Bounds, but sometimes I leave blanks, then fill them in during rewrites.

I write a lot of notes in my first draft. Notes about dialogue, action lines, possible scenes, etc. There's a lot of bold words and highlighting. Haha

Skipping dialogue and only focusing on visuals sounds interesting. It might turn out to be a great idea.

Those are good ideas you have. I just thought I'd try something different.

Cool, Christopher J. Bounds. Let us know how it turns out. That method might help other writers.

Don't matter. Whatever works for you and your ppl.

I don't include it in my outlines (which are pretty dense) unless it's a joke or a line I love. And then when I draft I'll put in all the dialogue, but a lot of it is placeholder dialogue. We actually have a really great class on this topic --> https://www.stage32.com/classes/Developing-Memorable-Characters-and-Worl...

I tend to overly do dialogue and meander. Thank you for the link on that topic, Emily.

As posted above there's no one method, Christopher J. Bounds. Everyone will have a different way of writing in general. For me I do include dialogue in the first draft and it's often wordy and lacks subtext. Essentially, I write what the character means to say but then in future drafts bury their meaning in subtext. It works for me.

It depends on how I'm feeling scene by scene. Sometimes I'll focus on a scene for a while until it feels right, other times I'll just get something down and come back to it after I've reached the end. Whatever works for you!

When you properly structure your story, every scene is where it needs to be, which means the only characters in the scene are those needed, and they can only discuss what's required based on the story needs. which means the dialogue will practically write itself. Then it's up to you to elevate the dialogue. Structure - Character - Dialogue ... in this order ... and when you fix screenplays, i.e. story analysis it's fixed in this order: Structure - Character - Dialogue ...

Thank you all for your input. Very helpful and I will remember that Lindbergh

You're welcome, Christopher J. Bounds.

I write placeholder dialog to get the characters talking. Then during rewrites I refine and trim the dialog.

Hi John - here is a Stage 32 class on this very subject that I highly recommend. Brian is a fabulous resource and teacher. You can check it out here: https://www.stage32.com/classes/Developing-Memorable-Characters-and-Worl...

Thank you Candace, Alexandra and Sam

I write it in full the first time around. It's actually something I rarely change.

I write in full also, creating changes along the way. But I must admit, I DO enjoy my breaks and don't write daily. My favorite part of the process is making the script lean and mean. Sculpting and stripping away the excess. Ah! "Killing my darlings!" One of my strengths as a writer is having a good ear for dialogue. The skill may actually be a by-product of my 30-year career as a former actor.

Christopher J. Bounds to stay in the flow, it’s probably best to write the dialogue in the first draft.

Also: could you please complete your Bio and add a profile image. As a site built around building community, it’s difficult to personalise y/our experience without those things. Thanks.

Sorry, I just started and still learning. Will do it

Christopher, no need to apologize. We've all been there and asked lots of questions. Do it the way that works best for you.

You got this, Chris! We all start somewhere. I'm a pretty polished screenwriter today, but when I began as a member of the Virginia Screenwriters Forum in 2014, I could hear the snickers from my fellow forum members. The reason? I failed to write my first feature in the proper industry-standard font. Ah! My first lesson. : )

Best of luck on your journey. Fall down? Get back up. Dust yourself off.

For sure start dialogue from the get-go. That way every pass on it you have a chance to punch up the dialogue as you edit and cut the fat from your first draft. I love writing dialogue. Too much actually lol. So, I find myself cutting down the most as I go back and edit. Keep it up man!

Jordan that's my problem. I start to write too much and go overboard lol

It'll be difficult to follow if you don't include necessary dialogue in your first draft, just keep in mind that you can always change it later. You can always edit. One of the best tools for dialogue is having a table read. You don't need professional actors for this but it gives you the opportunity to "watch" your screenplay from the perspective of the audience.

Christopher J. Bounds that's interesting, I feel that,

It depends upon the genre and intended platform of story so to speak, but yes holding off on building-in dialogue is a great approach to dramatization that was advocated by Hitchcock, and I have made an effort to keep that in mind, the question being

"where does my Story emerge?"

Is it (hopefully) cinematic movement and Action on screen?

Because delivering story through dialogue is more like stage play than cinema.

But as noted above some people do things differently or in parallel, and your editorial approach can vary widely also in terms of when you work up the dialogue and

how you do your polishes?

Personally I like your way because building the story via outline and scenes and bringing in the dialogue later as "connective tissue" provides a more solid means of avoiding the dreaded exposition-in-dialogue and hopefully makes your creative experience more streamlined and focused!

Try acting it out, even just in your head, that way it all pours out, the story the characters, and the dialogue. Takes a little time to get to doing it out loud, but you do get used to it, and it really helps to make dialogue authentic.

Good luck with whatever method you use.

Christopher J. Bounds thank you, Christopher.

Thank you all for your comments.

Something worth noting is the patina of life. The lived experience of your characters will be smothered in specific language. Perhaps the first draft at least might include words or phrases which allude to their uniquely specific world.