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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/3944
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

A scriptwriting exercise that always helps make a nice shape out of dialogue. Follow the instructions without reading them all the way through the first time. Just do each step one at a time:

1) Take a sheet of paper and write in the margin down 20 lines the letters A and B. They don't have to just swap e.g. ABABABABABAB but you can have no more than two the same in a row so AABABBABABABAAB = fine but AAABABABBBBAAABABBB = wrong.

2) Now on each row that has a letter in the margin you are going to draw some dots and dashes. Sort of like quasi Morse code. You may have a combination of up to any three on each line but you are not compelled to put three on any of them. In the end your shape could look like this:

> A .
> 
> B \_ . \_
> 
> A \_ \_ \_
> 
> B . \_
> 
> B \_ \_
> 
> A . \_ \_
> 
> B . . .
> 
> A \_ .
> 
> A \_ \_
> 
> etc...

3) Now, think of some dramatic subject for a scene. Maybe, a doctor breaking it to a patient they have a terminal disease. Or a husband telling his wife he is leaving her. Or a criminal confessing his crimes to a police detective.

4) Finally, you are going to use the plan you have created to create a short script. By now you may have guessed that the A and the B are character assignations e.g. criminal (A) and Detective (B). The dots represent short sentences or single word exclamations. The dashes represent any normal sentence greater than three words. So to give an example:

> Criminal: Is that recording?
> 
> Detective: Everything you say in here will be recorded. So... you were telling me about McGann.
> 
> Criminal: You've got to understand that he pushed me to this. He got greedy and the greedier he got the less scruples he had. It wasn't always that way.
> 
> Detective: It wasn't? How was it before McGann got greedy?
> 
> Did you make girl scout cookies? Help old ladies with their shopping?
> 
> Criminal: No, it... Look, I'm not trying to justify anything. I just want it to be over.
> 
> Detective: I understand. It's okay. Carry on.
> 
> Criminal: McGann and I, we've been running a long time. He...
> 
> He was a good guy, back at the start. I know you guys don't think so but he was.
> 
> etc...

You can of course, do this deliberately and introduce a character C etc. Try not to think about the random part, assigning the dots and dashes, it makes a natural rhythm that mimics the way people speak as they think.

HTH

Original score: 16