Over the years of writing stage plays and film scripts, as well as playing on stage, I have learned quite a bit about writing dialogue, and "these are a few of my favorite things": Don't include all the "polite speak" - Thank you, You're welcome   Don't tell an actor how to speak - politely, angrily, sarcastically  Pay attention to the rhythm of the words  - make sure the line can be easily delivered Use dialogue to propel the story - each line needs to have a purpose When I start editing for a client, I can usually tell if this is a first book by the sometimes clunky dialogue, including all the "polite speak" as well as repeating names: "Hi, Tom, this is Scott." "Hello, Scott. How are you?" "I'm fine, Tom, how about you." Those are extreme examples, but I have actually seen dialogue close to that, and that does nothing to move the story along or reveal character, or do more than simply take up ...