Writing for the Ear

Screenplay dialogue must pass the "read aloud" test. Lines that look elegant on paper often sound stilted when spoken. The gap between written and spoken English is enormous, and great dialogue lives in the narrow space between them.

Contractions, fragments, and repetitions make dialogue sound human. "I am not going to do that" reads formally. "I'm not gonna do that" sounds like a person. The screenwriter's job is crafting artificial speech that passes for natural.

This is why adapting novels is so hard. Prose serves the eye; dialogue serves the ear. The best adaptations rewrite rather than transcribe.