In-House Crit: Talkin' Heads

We haven't done this one for a while, so let's have some fun.

Dialogue can be tricky. In fact, it can derail your story if it's unbelievable, stilted, or dorky. (Go on. Ask Mr. A about all the dorky dialogue he winnows out of my work.)

Strong dialogue, on the other hand, brings your characters--and your story--to life. It conveys emotion and intent, shares information, creates tension.

So here's the way Talkin' Heads works:

• Submit your 250-word DIALOGUE-RICH excerpt for critique. It DOES NOT have to be the first page. It DOES NOT have to be from a completed manuscript (proofread would, of course, be nice). Please make sure the excerpt is A MINIMUM OF 50 PERCENT DIALOGUE.
• Precede your excerpt with A SHORT BLURB EXPLAINING THE SETTING. (Emphasis on "short" please)
• Choose a ONE- OR TWO-WORD DESCRIPTION of the EMOTION or PURPOSE your scene is supposed to convey. THIS IS IMPORTANT! Our critiques will be focused primarily on whether this goal was accomplished.
  
• Submissions are open now. I will only close them before the session opens if the number of entries rises above 50.

Format:

SCREEN NAME
TITLE
GENRE
DIALOGUE EMOTION

(Short intro here)

(Dialogue-rich excerpt here)

It will be helpful if, in your intro blurb, you identity the main character (or whoever the primary character in the scene is).

That's it! I'll post the entries on Wednesday. All entrants, please remember that you need to critique a minimum of 5 other entries.

Questions? Post 'em!