Nods and shrugs

[DLC]

I noticed there's a lot of nodding in my WIP. I read somewhere this is Bad. Thinking about it, seems I and everyone I talk to do a lot of nodding, shrugging and shaking our heads. Using finger guns might work in some, but not fantasy. What to do? What do you do? Does it matter?

 

[CatrionaGrace]

Dunno. Who cares? (Someone is probably shrugging; no need to mention it.)

Yes, of course. (Someone is probably nodding; no need to mention it.)

She did that? What an idiot. (Someone is likely shaking his or her head; no- well you get the picture.)

 

[Trish]

Like Catriona said, I only mention nodding or shrugging if it's necessary and that's rarely the case. I do have a character in one short story that nods a lot. Way too much actually. But it's part of his characterization that he nods along with everyone, no matter what they're saying. He's always in agreement. That's the point though - he's annoying as hell.

 

[Louanne Learning]

maybe only use them when you want to indicate a pause between lines of dialogue, like someone is thinking of what to say

 

[Stuart Dren]

Well, I don't know what a lot is to you.

Sometimes a situation or particular character calls for nonverbal communication, so shrugs and nods don't particularly stand out to me in prose like, say, permutations on the word 'said' do. Though as Catriona pointed out the gestures aren't really needed when there's dialogue to express it anyway.

They're also not needed for summary:

Fincher asked us the muck the stables. We nodded and started right after breakfast.

You're also allowed a quirk or two. Remember when Dagny lighted a cigarette every other page? I'm picking on her. Many authors have used it as an easy pause, dialogue beat, or general addition to moving and blocking (be it meaningful e.g. femme fatale or soccer mom pushed to her limit, or mundane for the era or character).

If you're just looking to 'fill in' around dialogue and those gestures happen to be on the lowest shelf, it might be an opportunity to reach deeper into the POV instead with observations (internal or external), suspicions etc.

 

[Homer Potvin]

The knock on nodding, shrugging, smiling, frowning, or raising an eyebrow (which I hear mentioned in the same group) has always been that's a lazy excuse for a dialogue beat. Almost as if the writer couldn't think of anything better and threw that in there. I've never agreed with that 100% because, like you said, people do nod and shrug constantly in real life, but I can see where they're coming from. I don't think I'd have a real problem with reading it unless everything else around it was lame too.

 

[Naomasa298]

It's necessary only if it's doing narrative work - in other words, when it's showing something that isn't otherwise being shown through, for example, dialog.

Otherwise, it's about as necessary as "he/she said", and should be used in roughly the same places.

 

[Rzero]

Nods and shrugs and the like are hardly useless. You don't need to eliminate them entirely. You just want to use them strategically as a small part of your dialogue support. Include actions, expressions, gestures, sensory observations, internal reactions, all of that stuff, but keep them all minimal. Use them to flesh out your scene and make it immersive. Use them to fine-tune the cadence of dialogue. And when it makes sense, use them instead of dialogue, but again, all in moderation.

Also remember that some characters are going to be more animated, moving around more, speaking with their hands, etc., while others will be verbose but stationary, and still others will be more stoic or contemplative and likely to nod instead of answering verbally. The amount of physicality you give a scene should depend partially on the characters and what they're feeling in the moment.

 

[defaux]

It makes sense of the gesture is the communication beat, like when a character can't or won't talk, and occasionally as emphasis supporting dialogue. But you don't want to go too far with it or you end up with the mind conversation from Spaceballs.

Try asking if it's necessary that the reader sees this particular gesture, or if it adds value to the scene. If the scene plays out the same without it, maybe cut.

 

[Schism]

Maybe use them in place of quotation marks.