Talk is Never Cheap: Dialogue Workshop, with the Darling Axe
Discover how to write sharper, more compelling dialogue that reveals character, creates tension, and drives your story forward.
Time & Location
Sep 19, 2026, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Bowen Island Public Library Annex, 430 Bowen Island Trunk Rd, Bowen Island, BC V0N 1G0, Canada
About the Event
Dialogue carries tension, reveals character, and pushes a story forward. Participants begin by improvising short scenes built around opposing character goals. We examine where exchanges fall flat and where they generate friction. Participants then revise weak dialogue into conflict-rich interactions that sharpen character dynamics and move the plot. Writers leave with practical strategies for making every line of dialogue earn its place.
About the Darling Axe
Michelle Barker is an award-winning author and poet and is the co-author of Immersion and Emotion: The Two Pillars of Storytelling, Story Skeleton: The Classics, and Fake Query Letters by Dead Authors. Her fiction, non-fiction, and poetry have appeared in literary reviews worldwide. She has published three YA novels (one fantasy and two historical fiction), a historical picture book, and a chapbook of poetry. Michelle holds a BA in English literature (UBC) and an MFA in creative writing (UBC). Many of the writers she’s worked with have gone on to win publishing contracts and honours for their work. Michelle lives in Vancouver on the unceded territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh nations.
David Griffin Brown is an award-winning short fiction writer and co-author of Immersion and Emotion: The Two Pillars of Storytelling, Story Skeleton: The Classics, and Fake Query Letters by Dead Authors. He holds a BA in anthropology from UVic and an MFA in creative writing from UBC, and his short fiction has been published in literary magazines such as the Malahat Review and Grain. His latest project is a fantasy-satire duology about the US-Canada trade war called We've Come for Your Eggs (And Other Reasons to Annex the North). David founded Darling Axe Editing in 2018, and as part of his Book Broker interview series, he has compiled querying advice from over 100 literary agents. He lives in Victoria, Canada, on the traditional territory of the Songhees and Kosapsum Nations.