Nothing kills a novel faster than clichéd, clunky dialogue. Get it right with advice from crime author and MA tutor Claire McGowan
A novel is not a script. We’re fortunate that we have many more tools at our disposal, from narration to inner monologue to description. But even with that, clunky dialogue is something that will kill a novel faster than you can say ‘Look out, he’s got a shooter!’ In a crime novel, dialogue needs to work hard, as it has to convey information, tell us something about the characters (and possibly even function as a clue or red herring), and also not interfere with the pace or momentum of the plot. Sounds like a lot!