"Play"ing

Occasionally, I brashly believe I know something about the art and craft of fiction. I sound, to myself and others, as if I actually know something about the mess that is creation. Then I read something by Salinger and realize I know next to nothing, very little, a minute amount that would fill the space of a pin head.

Dialogue, at least to me, is a bit of a lost art. Creating realistic, intriguing, plot relevant, character relevant dialogue is something that is difficult to find in any author. Salinger was an expert at it. He reveled in it, it seems. And, as we know now, the past tense can no longer be avoided when referencing J.D. Salinger.

I feel very lucky to be working with a promising young writer, Joe Lewis, on the adaptation of one of my short stories into a stage play. The writing is both invigorating and challenging. I enlisted Mr. Lewis because of his knowledge of the genre, of which I have little, as well as his work ethic and overall talent. I also knew he was a student who would not back down from his own ideas.

Suffice it to say that playwriting, or screenwriting for that matter, is an exercise every fiction writer should attempt. The development of character and scene, tension and drama specifically and almost exclusively through dialogue is a mountain we should all climb. Of course, there's a certain level of interpretation on the other end through the eyes and mind of the actors and the director, but ultimately, the writer is still trying to convey a feeling, a sense, an emotion through the lines spoken by his or her characters. Without the ally of exposition, I have felt at times during this process as if I'm flapping like a loose grocery sack in a persistent wind. The process is grinding, and I find myself needing more days off from it than I expected. Partly due to numerous other commitments, including my own work, but also due to the toll this type of writing can take on an artist. I admire those who work with the genre on a consistent basis. They are to be commended for their fortitude and efforts.

But this started out as an entry on Salinger. I reread Salinger's "A Perfect Day for Bananafish." I love that story for the sake of what is revealed but also for the the dialogue, which is perfect, beautiful, and sustaining. A tip of an unworthy hat to J.D. Salinger and a thank you for giving us his stories. The dialogue is not only a perfect study for beginning to intermediate students but is also a tribute to the art of the spoken word in fiction where plot is advanced, character revealed, and so much more seethes beneath its surface.