AgentSkillsCN

dialogue-craft

剧本对话的写作技巧，涵盖潜台词的运用、人物声音的差异化表达、对白的铺陈与展开，以及对话的四大功能——揭示人物性格、推进剧情发展、制造冲突，以及带来娱乐与趣味。 适用场景：在打磨对话内容、深化潜台词、区分人物声音，或在剧本对话中巧妙处理铺陈与展开时使用。

SKILL.md
--- frontmatter
name: dialogue-craft
description: |
  Dialogue writing techniques for screenplays.
  Covers subtext, character voice differentiation, exposition handling,
  and the four purposes of dialogue (reveal character, advance plot,
  create conflict, entertain).

  Use when: polishing dialogue, developing subtext, differentiating
  character voices, or handling exposition in screenplay dialogue.

Dialogue Craft

Core Principles

Character Voice

Each character should have a distinctive voice based on:

  • •Vocabulary - Education, background, profession
  • •Rhythm - Short/long sentences, interruptions
  • •Syntax - Formal/informal, complete/fragmented
  • •Idioms - Regional, cultural, generational

Subtext

What characters mean vs. what they say:

  • •Characters rarely say exactly what they mean
  • •Conflict between text and subtext creates tension
  • •Actions can contradict words
  • •Silences speak volumes

Techniques

Exposition Through Conflict

Bad:

fountain
SARAH
I'm your sister who you haven't seen in five years since mom's funeral.

Good:

fountain
SARAH
Five years and you couldn't even call?

MIKE
I was at the funeral.

SARAH
For an hour. Then you vanished.

Oblique Dialogue

Characters talk around the real issue:

fountain
SARAH
How's the apartment?

MIKE
It's fine.

SARAH
Just fine?

MIKE
What do you want me to say?

(They're really discussing their relationship, not the apartment)

Interruptions and Overlaps

fountain
SARAH
I think we should—

MIKE
—talk about this later?

Silence and Pauses

fountain
SARAH
Did you love her?

Mike doesn't answer. His silence says everything.

Voice Differentiation

CharacterVocabularyRhythmTraits
ProfessorAcademicMeasuredComplete sentences
TeenSlangFastFragments
SoldierDirectClippedCommands
PoetImageryFlowingMetaphor

Common Pitfalls

  • •On-the-nose dialogue - Characters stating feelings directly
  • •Expository lumps - Information dumps
  • •Generic voice - All characters sound the same
  • •Name overuse - "Well, Sarah, I think..."
  • •Redundant dialogue - Saying what action shows

Best Practices

  1. •Read dialogue aloud
  2. •Cover character names—can you tell who's speaking?
  3. •Cut anything that doesn't reveal character or advance plot
  4. •Use silence and action as dialogue
  5. •Let subtext do the heavy lifting