Successful screenplays have several characteristics in common. Two of these are tension and dialog.

Tension is also known as conflict. It is what drives the viewer to want to see more. Tension, or conflict, has two sides. It happens between two people, or characters, and happens in everyday life. In everyday life, tension is not always resolved.

As soon as tension is resolved in a screenplay, the viewer will lose interest, unless there is other tension to keep the viewer interested. The first step is to build tension. What is the main character's central dilemma? What are his or her ethical compromises? What conflict does he or she have with the other characters?

As soon as you build the tension, hold on to it. Flesh it out. Let your characters struggle through it. The last thing you want to do is resolve the tension prematurely or abandon it in your narrative.

Dialog is key to establishing who the characters are and conveying that to the audience. It is also what moves the plot forward. The key to engaging dialog is for it to come across as if the viewer is snooping on a conversation. Even better would be if it is witty or spunky without being selfconscious (i.e., without being aware that someone is listening). At a minimum, it should embody the characters' personality. It should be emblematic of them.

In your dialog, avoid having a character state something explicitly to deliver a point or piece of information to the audience. For example, don't have one character tell another character he likes his blue shirt unless it would be natural for him to do so. Similarly, don't have one character needlessly address another character by name. If it is natural for one character to address another character by name, then do so; otherwise, avoid it. Think about when one person will use another person's name in everyday life.

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