Writing Telephone Scenes

One of the writer’s loops I’m on was discussing scenes in which characters talk on the telephone. Such scenes are often the bane of writers because they are so difficult to convey effectively, and, related, the bane of industry professionals who are always coaching new writers not to write such scenes. The problems are:

1) they can be very static. A character is standing alone, talking on the phone.

2) You can’t see the person the character is talking to, so you miss the opportunity to relay all kinds of nuances in their conversation.

But telephone conversations can also be very effective, especially if you use their constrictions to your advantage.

• For example, create a contrast between what the character is saying and what he/she is doing. Is she a ball-busting executive who is ripping her department a new one while changing her baby’s dirty diaper? Is he an assassin discussing dinner plans while assembling his rifle?
• Have their words form only a small part of the conversation. Maybe rather than listening to what the other person is saying, the character is more interested in the background noises, or in the pauses.
• Have the POV character speculate on the other’s behavior and actions. Have them wonder if the potential date is paying attention to the conversation or checking their email? Is the kidnapper who claims to have your wife on the other end of the line bluffing or holding a dagger to her throat as he speaks? Stuff like that.

The characters talk on the phone a lot in secret society girl, and in several instances, the phone is the device around which major plot points hinge — like Amy getting the invitation to the interview in chapter one of the first book! There are a bunch of important phone conversations in Ascendant as well, and I had a lot of fun writing the scenes where she is trying to get in touch with Giovanni and his roommates are ridiculing her name and the fact that he’s dating a nun.

What are your favorite telephoning scenes in books?