Hello and welcome back.

Today’s topic is Internal Dialogue. The book that I read on this subject is from the Busy Writer’s Guide series by Marcy Kennedy.

So what is internal dialogue? The thoughts that are going through the character’s head when he or she meets up with another character. Or is in some sort of conflict.

Why use it? It’s used, or I used it, when showing a character what he or she is really thinking. For example let’s say a three year old child asks his mother what she thinks of his drawing. Most three year old kids aren’t at the Davinci or Picasso level of talent. A three year old would probably do a line drawing or stick figure drawing. Not wanting to destroy her child’s confidence the mother says it’s a beautiful drawing. Meanwhile what she’s thinking is that it’s good for a three year old, but in reality she thinks it’s really ugly. You would show this in italics like this, it’s actually very ugly, dear.

Another way is a husband comes home from a business trip and hugs his wife lifting her off the floor. He says, “I missed you, my love.”

Her response is, “And I missed you,” is he going to kiss me or throw me through the wall.

It’s a great tool for ramping up conflict in a scene.

Make it a great day and see you next time.