When Characters Donāt Communicate: Problem or Reality?
You know how annoying it is when characters could solve their problems by just communicating better (or by communicating at all)?. You get frustrated and call it unnecessary drama, but then you think about how many real life problems could be solved if people would just talk. Few people in real life communicate frequently and effectively, so itās funny how accurate that fictional āclicheā can be.
Spitting out feelings is hard. Talking about problems is hard. A lack of communication can be realistic, but stories canāt always directly mimic reality if they want to be good stories.
Imagine if dialogue truly included all theĀ āuhās, backtracking, corrections, stammers, forgotten words, etc. of realistic speech. Not only would it be a total pain in the ass to read, it would take up so much of the text that the story would barely have room to flourish. Oftentimes, adding more reality to a story can help increase its quality, but thereās a difference between acceptable breaks from reality vs bad storytelling.
So why does so much communication-oriented drama in fiction fall flat or make it seem like the drama is just added for fun? It doesnāt explain why (or the āwhyā is a poor reason).Ā Itās perfectly realistic to have characters not communicate properly, however you have to show the readers the reasonĀ why and make sure that reason is a good one.Ā Why does the character act this way? Whatās stopping them from talking? And most importantly, the reason why they eventually talk needs to be up to the same standard.Ā
There are some factors that determine if lack of communication in a story is a genuine and understandable problem vs a cheap way to add tension. Many of these overlap with each other:
Character personality. If you present a characterĀ as someone who is good at communication, but then they refuse to communicate for one specific thing, itās going to be frustrating to read and seem unrealistic. Now, thatās not to say that this character canāt have some specific reason to behave differently in that instanceā but you have to show that reason to the readers. Not every character can get away with having communication issues without it being annoying or looking cheap. Sometimes, even for the characters where poor communication makes sense, itās easy for readers to find them to be annoying so craft them carefully.
Genre and role of conflict. Lack of communication that stems from a character being unable to show their feelings is a form of conflict, usually inner conflict. Inner conflict is the driver behind stories using the ācharacter vs selfā model, also often known as ācharacter-driven storiesā. It can show up in more plot-driven stories, however you have to be careful because writing in a genre is a promise to your readers that youāre going to deliver a certain type of story. Not all genres can explore communication issues caused by personal problems and not all plots are equipped to work with them.
The actualĀ reason.Ā Some issues are more forgivable to not being resolved as quickly than others, but your readers need to be told why itās not a simple fix. Donāt be afraid to explore the potential consequences that are holding the character back. The reason(s) needs to make realistic sense, be understandable for who the character is, reasonable to the situation theyāre in, and add to the story in a meaningful way.
Repetitiveness of the issue. If a character is just shy and they never learn to work through it, especially if they donāt even try, then the communication tumor is much more likely to be seen as annoying, boring, or the story as stagnant. When something is constantly an issue but itās never addressed, the writing is significantly more likely to be seen as cheapā particularity if this issue is part of the main plot!
Getting over the hurdle. Because the reasons for poor communication can be never-ending, the ways it can be resolved mirror that. The point at which a character learns to work through their communication issue is a climax of that particular issue and plot, so donāt treat it like some throwaway concept. The bigger the communication issue, the bigger the climax.Ā
Your characters may not be amazing communicators all the time, but to avoid creating cheap drama you need to show readers the reasons for the poor communication, why those reasons matter, and give a satisfying conclusion to the conflict.
Bad poor communication in a story uses it as a plot tumor or an excuse for an event or reaction.Ā
Good poor communication in a story treats it as an exploration of character with something to add to the story as whole.
Communication issues are conflict, not excuses for something to happen or not happen. Treat the conflict properly and it can add depth to a character and plot, with a good splash of realism, but treat it poorly and your story will be poorly crafted. Reality, in this case, needs to be handled carefully to benefit a story.
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