Hone your stylistic fiction-editing skills

Edit dialogue with confidence

This self-paced course teaches editors and writers how to fix stylistic problems in dialogue that are interfering with pace, purpose and reader engagement.

The learning includes a suite of downloadable practice questions and model answers so that you can test what you’ve learned.

Learning outcomes

After completing this course, you'll understand how to assess dialogue and use your line-editing skills to help your author:
  • write purposeful and balanced dialogue
  • avoid backstory-laden speech
  • fix ineffective and intrusive speech tags
  • spice up mundane speech
  • create rhythm that mirrors mood
  • use dialogue as a suspense tool
  • craft implied dialogue
  • ​amend distracting speech tags
  • ground speech in the environment
  • use free indirect speech
  • manage accents, dialect and idiolect
  • break up dull monologues.

Order now and start learning today

WHAT YOU PAY ...
34.99
+ tax
No time limits on access

The learning process

Video tutorial

Watch the video and prepare for the practice exercises.

Practice exercises

Test what you've learned from the video tutorial.

Model answers

Compare your work with how I tackled the exercises.

Transcript booklet

Download a PDF booklet featuring all of the video content.

Resource list

Discover other tools and resources to help you hone your line craft.

Closed captions

Deaf students can access a live transcript of the audiovisual content.

Who is this course suitable for?
​

FICTION BEGINNERS
Beginner fiction line editors and copyeditors who are learning the foundations.
STYLISTIC IMPROVERS
​Intermediate fiction line- and copyeditors seeking to hone stylistic skills.
SPECIALISM SWITCHERS
Experienced non-fiction editors who want to switch to fiction.
SELF-EDITING AUTHORS
​Beginner and emerging novelists who are self-editing a final draft.

More courses in the dialogue training suite
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Course access

How do I pay?
  • Once the course is live, use one of the green buttons to enrol via Teachable.
  • You can pay via PayPal or Stripe.
How do I access the course?
  • As soon as you've purchased the course, you'll get immediate and continuing access to the materials 24/7 via Teachable.
How long can I access the course for?
For as long as you want! All my courses come with lifetime access so you can learn when it suits you, not me.
​Does the course come with CIEP membership upgrade points?
I'll be submitting the course for consideration. In the meantime, if you're ready to upgrade your CIEP membership, the following courses already count towards total training/CPD upgrade points.
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  • Style Sheets for Fiction Editing: 3 non-core skills points
  • Switching to Fiction: 2 non-core skills points
  • How to Line Edit for Suspense: 2 non-core skills points
  • How to Write the Perfect Fiction Editorial Report: 2 non-core skills points
  • Narrative Distance: 1 non-core skills point
  • Branding for Business Growth: 1 non-core skills point
  • Blogging for Business Growth: 1 non-core skills point
  • Social Media for Business Growth: 1 non-core skills point
Do I have to pay tax?
Whether you're charged tax (and how much) depends on where you live. Many countries or regions legally require customers to pay some form of consumption tax (eg VAT) on digital products. Teachable remits that charge back to your jurisdiction's tax authority.