Howdy, workshoppers!
We’re in the final week of Lauren Veloski’s fantastic dialogue workshop and there’s been some stellar advice and discussions over the past month — thank you to everyone who’s joined in and shared your thoughts!
Lauren’s latest lesson is all about the mighty monologue, which made me think of this piece of writing advice from John Yorke:
“Put your most persuasive argument in the mouth of your antagonist.”
AKA: a fantastic excuse to go to town crafting a spectacular villain monologue!
But here’s the trick.
The best antagonists somehow manage to engage our empathy or understanding. Perhaps they’re charming or maybe they just genuinely have a good point to make.
And it’s this persuasiveness makes them much more interesting than your garden variety moustache-twirling Bad Guy™.
Give it a try:
Write a monologue from the perspective of your WIP’s antagonist and make it SO relatable or reasonable or rational that it makes your protagonist (and your reader) stop and go, “huh, maybe they’re right…”
Then share a lil’ snippet below for feedback and thoughts from your fellow workshoppers!
Thanks so much for taking part in this month’s workshop and our brand new Community Corner!
Catch up with all Lauren’s tips on crafting ‘real talk’ in your writing here — and may all your dialogue be snappy and full of subtext…
Yes, I understand the Miranda warning. I watch cop shows like everybody else. Hell no, I don’t want a frigging lawyer. Leeches on society, every damn one of them. I admit it, I killed my wife. Why would I deny it?
"Why?" I stared at her from the bed, grappling with the last vision I had just had.
"What's that dear?" Her hands reached out to steady me.
"You killed her."
She paused and I saw her eyes change in the light. "Oh Molly dear." A sigh. "You're just now figuring that out? Let me guess, did you see me stab her? Did you do see the light leave her eyes?"
"Stop!" I pushed her away. "I don't want to hear it."
"But you asked me why I killed her." I tensed, gripping my hands tightly together. "Did you ever figure out where your powers came from? Originally I mean. Or how we ended up hear in the first place? Or why I wanted Vincent to marry you? Your mother may have have seemed all too perfect to the masses, but I knew her. I knew what she was capable of. I was protecting you."
"You killed my mother! How is that protecting me?"