Hi there, I've been wanting to write a couple of dramas for a while, but have not felt ready until extremely recently (1-2 days ago). I've had the ideas in my head, and the one I plan to write first is about a family that has to deal with their child that has just been diagnosed with brain cancer. It's a simply story, really. But I have a few questions regarding the matter. First of all, Most of my stories have been "big" ideas, but obviously with this story being a bit more subtle, it's uncharted territory for me. I struggle with making things that happen every day (but with a conflict of some sort) interesting enough to the reader, and my dialogue can feel a little made up at times. Is there a way to solve this, other than simply writing experience? I want to people watch a bit more, but I live too far out from town and I'd have to get a lift in with my parents as I don't own a car. This poses a problem. Are there any writing exercises, or something else, that I can do to achieve a more realistic conversation? Secondly, which tense would be better for this? I feel like first person would be best (POV of the mother), but would it make the reader feel more detached from the whole thing, certainly in this instance, which requires a close connection to the characters? Any advice would be helpful. Finally, I've done some basic research on cancer, but not a lot as it is not the main focus. But if anyone has some trustworthy sites which they could link to, then that would be fantastic. Feel free to discuss this matter in any way, too - I'm interested to hear people's thoughts! Cheers.
There are YouTube channels for people watching, I think. I'd personally just study the kind of the dialogue you want to write that is in different books. After all, people talk differently than we write them. Dialogue and coverstions are very different. It's more important to create engaging dialogue that SEEMS authentic than actual authentic dialog. As someone who has does done transcripts, actual conversations translate horribly to the page. 1st person or 3rd person is fine, whatever suits your writing style. The best way to write dialogue is a a combination of study and practice, I think.
Thanks for your answer. I've started writing it now, and I'm looking back at my childhood to try and write how the child will behave. I'll be using first person. Cheers!
I would recommend that you read John Gunther's powerful Death Be Not Proud, a memoir by a father of his seventeen-year-old son's losing fight with a brain tumor. While the medical science is radically different now than it was then, it will give you great insight into the family relationships and the emotional ups and downs. I read it at age 14 and it was officially the first book that ever made me cry.
