“Do you think people really talk like this?” she asked, stirring her coffee absently.

“Like what?”

“Like characters in books. With perfect comebacks and meaningful pauses.”

He laughed. “No. Real conversation is messier. Full of ‘um’s and tangents and people talking over each other.”

“Exactly. So why do we write it this way?”

“Because real conversation, transcribed exactly, would be boring to read. We’re creating the illusion of reality, not reality itself.”

She considered this, taking a sip. “So it’s not about being true to life. It’s about being true to the feeling of life.”

“Now you’re getting it.”

---

Note to self: This exercise helped me understand that dialogue isn’t documentary - it’s impressionist painting. Capture the essence, not every detail.