Have you ever wondered about the right balance between dialogue and narrative when writing a book or short story? If so, you’re not alone.
A quick online search will tell you that many bestselling books spend about 25% to 35% of the novel in dialogue. I used to believe this was the magic percentage to ensure a well-balanced story—the perfect formula for success.
Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a phenomenal author symposium hosted by Boroughs Publishing. One of the workshops challenged us to write 300 words of dialogue in 15 minutes—without any indicators of what was happening in the scene or who was involved. Challenging? Absolutely. But this exercise pushed us to make our dialogue more meaningful, allowing the scene to unfold naturally without relying on narrative to explain the mood, characters, or emotions. I won’t lie—it was tough! But it really highlighted how excessive narrative can slow a story’s pacing instead of letting the characters drive it.
Since then, I’ve approached editing with a newfound excitement, looking for ways to replace narrative with gripping character exchanges. I’m not saying narrative isn’t important, but I’ve set a new goal: increasing my dialogue from 25–35% to 50% in my novels.
Here’s my challenge to you:
Set a timer for 15 minutes and write pure dialogue—no narrative at all. It can be about anything you want.
Now, ask yourself:
- Did you successfully convey the scene without narrative?
- Would a reader understand what’s happening based on dialogue alone?
If this exercise works for you like it did for me, you might just discover the foundation for a new story—I know I did!
Now, I want to hear from you! Do you think there’s a magic ratio for dialogue vs. narrative? Do you prefer more conversation or description in a story? Drop a comment below! ⬇️
XOXO,
LK 💋