(See <Author> - our Smartphone App on Google Play) First, dialogue is good. Don't fear it. Dialogue helps to break up the density (and sometimes boredom) associated with length and complex sections. Even better, dialogue can clarify narrative and allows the reader to understand through the character's point of view. For example, in the passage below the story starts by making an important point in what we might call "direct address" (non-dialogue).  ............. The sun rose with an ominous hue over the village of Green River. While the workers had yet to awake, Joe was already awake, dressed, and standing on the river bank. His nervous glances could not ignore the sunrise, its orange tinge and indistinct shadows, and the bold stillness and dead quiet of the day. It was nothing like any morning he had ever seen. "Joe!" came a whisper to his left. Joe jumped back. He turned cautiously back to see Gwen, who had emerged from the shadows. "Eh?" he asked. "Don't you..." she turned away from him, gazing across the water. Her voice trailed off. "What?" he demanded, stepping back. "Don't you feel it?" "Well, yes. Something crazy." "More than crazy!" she insisted, pointing at the sun. "The sun?" "Look at it!" she whispered. "It's never been like since, since, well...." Joe faced Gwen. "When? What are you saying?" Gwen looked down, toeing the sand. "When?" "Do you remember the day when Papa Ebert died?" "It's been 20 years." "Remember what that day was like?" Joe looked up, remembering, and suddenly felt a lurch in his arms, an involuntary tightening. Closing his eyes he felt his muscles relax as he fell to his knees, trembling. ............. The point of the passage might be, simply, "It was an ominous day in Green River Village." But, clearly, the dialogue lets the reader feel more. Secondly, the dialogue is not restricted to a tiny utterance. Instead it develops along with the story and indeed may continue for pages. A writer fears a multi-page dialogue, thinking the reader will tire. However, remember well that any reader will appreciate an excuse to trot quickly through the pages, and such a dialogue passage makes that possible. Another question is whether to include "he said" and "she said", etc., with every utterance. As you can see in the passage above, it's possible to use these dialogue tags sparingly. However, please note that writer guidelines warn against the use of alternatives to "said". These are disparagingly called "bookisms". According to the guidelines, "said" is best if the dialogue is strong enough. According to the preachments, a writer simply pulls these words from the air, like a thesaurus, and "said" is the only proper word to use. It is my feeling that a writer needs to go beyond truisms. In the above example, three bookisms are used: demanded, insisted, and whispered. In my opinion, these three words tell us about the characters feel, and this is very important. Another problem is the style of speaking, or (sometimes) dialect. In writing dialogue you need to imagine how one of the characters would speak. Hopefully, the other character(s) in the discussion will speak in another distinct way. In the worst case, a new writer will offer only one manner of speaking for all characters, and - voila! - that voice is the author himself or herself. Practice writing dialogue with these thoughts in mind. One useful exercise would be to write whole short stories with dialogue alone and then trying to read the manuscript aloud. If your voice hesitates during the reading, it may well be time for revision. Strike a balance between story and dialogue. In this way you can spark greater reader interest and understanding even as you describe your character. Bruce L. Cook