SECRETS OF WRITING: Dialog Part 2 - Text and Subtext

We’ve already covered the difference between text and subtext. Now let’s try to understand how it works for dialog.

In bad fiction, people say exactly what they mean to each other. This is also done in children’s fiction, because children don’t have the facility to understand subtext as well as adults.  But when I say children, I mean young children. The average comic reader is usually over the age of 12, so subtext is not out of the question.

In fact, a lack of subtext marks any story as shallow. Subtext adds dimension to the work and adds meaning to the dialog.

The most effective way to engage an Audience is to give their minds something to work with. It isn’t enough to show them things. You also want to hint at things. When the mind receives incomplete information, it tries to fill in the blanks. Subtext creates more depth for the Audience and it causes them to feel the hidden meaning behind the words.

EXAMPLE: A man and a woman facing each other across the dinner table. The man says: “Did you do anything interesting today?” His expression somewhat challenging and suspicious. The woman won’t meet his eyes, but she has a slight smirk: “Oh, nothing. I just saw an old friend.”

The emotions revealed on a character’s face colors the meaning of the words. We don’t have the benefit of sound in comics, so we can’t deal with inflection and word stress without using artificial semiotics. But with emotional expressions, the subtext of the conversation is revealed. The man doesn’t trust the woman. He feels she’s cheating on him. The woman is feeding his jealousy, taunting him with vague answers. She may very well be cheating on him.

(Art insert: Same dialog, same couple, same setting, but their expressions are friendly and smiling.)

Notice how the subtext changes in this new example. Suddenly, they seem interested in each other and now it looks like this is all part of some kind of courting ritual.

Subtext changes the meaning of a scene, so the actions of the characters when they talk must be carefully selected. The choice of words is also critical. Some words can be used to suggest the subtext more strongly, creating a level of irony.

REMEMBER: Never forget to use subtext in a conversation.

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