Reminder to remove your own crutch words from your characters’ dialog!
When I’m talking or writing in my own voice, I use a couple of words excessively: well, just, pretty.
Everything is, “well, that’s just pretty great, isn’t it?”
You probably have similar “crutch” words–words that you unconsciously favor. You can also call them “filler” words. Go-to words. They’re a big part of your voice. (That is, not the sounds you’re making, but the personality of your verbal and written communication, as well as your internal monologue.)
Your crutch words probably won’t be the same as mine, but it’s not hard to figure out what they are. When you’re writing dialog, it’s pretty easy to let these words slip in, even if you’re aware of them. So that all of your characters will be repeatedly starting sentences with “well” and preferring “pretty” over “very” or “really.”
Did two characters use “just” in their dialog multiple times on a single page, with no real purpose other than that it sounded more natural that way? Then that’s probably one of your words.
Now, here’s where I may lose you for a moment. It’s okay if right now you’re thinking “so you want me to make my characters speak unnaturally?“
To you. Sure.
That use of your crutch word sounded most natural to you because that’s your natural voice, but it’s not you who’s speaking. It’s your character. Having all of your characters speak in your natural voice will make them all sound like you, which will make them all sound the same.
It’s your job, as an author, to find these words and ask yourself: “is this the character speaking, or is this me?”
If the answer is “oh no, this is me,” then delete the word. Sometimes it’ll be just that easy. “Well” can be deleted from the front of a sentence, and “just” can usually be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence, too.
Other times, you may need to replace words, or even whole phrases. Think of who this person is, where they’re from, and what they know. If they don’t say “pretty good” do they say “decent?” Do they leave it at “good?” Do they say “groovy, man?” If they’re begrudgingly admitting it, they may say, “it was fine, I guess.”
None of these choices changes how “good” the thing being described is, but they’ll have a subtle effect on the voice of your character. And when one character says “the show was fine, I guess” and the other character says “the show was groovy, man” your dialog won’t just convey what your characters thinks about the show, but who they are as people.
And that’s what good dialogue does.
Is it okay to give one character your crutch words? Of course. Unless you have a strong idea for their unique voice, your protagonist will probably be the one you’ll be lending most of your own voice to, as you’ll get the closest to not only their written and verbal communication, but their interior monologue as well.
Give other characters their own crutch words and phrases. They’re a natural part of voice and language. If you’re struggling with coming up with another voice on your own, pay attention to the people you talk to. Steal them from your friends and family. Does your aunt begin every story with “oh, [your name], you don’t even know.” Have your protagonists’ aunt/neighbor/mom/whomever do that, too.
Recognizing your crutch words won’t only help you remove your own voice from your characters’ speech, but will give you the opportunity to replace those words with real characterization. Your dialog will be so much stronger for it.
Personally I prefer not to call them “crutches” but “characterization” because they’re doing something about character regardless of intentions
