In every scene, especially scenes involving mainly just dialogue, every character should want something. Making every character in a scene have a goal is an easy way to avoid dialogue that's just exposition, and to make sure your dialogue drives the plot forward and/or reveals characterisation.
It doesn't have to be complicated or super weighty - as long as the characters have a goal, there will be tension in the scene if the goals are small.
Character X wants to borrow a pen, and character Y wants to make a good impression on character X. X wants t insult Y until they go away, and Y wants to annoy X by pretending not to notice the insults. X wants Y to give them the last slice of pizza, and Y is super full but still doesn't want X to have it.
No matter what your character's goal is, it will reveal something about who that character is to the reader, and the conflict between your characters goals will give your scenes momentum.
YOU ARE READING
The Do's and Don'ts of Writing a Story
HumorFor all you amateur writers on Wattpad that want to write a smashing book. Here are the top tips. There are four different sections in here: PLOT - anything incredibly relevant to a book. The backbone. Everything that, usually, you always need. LANG...