The lack of authentic, real-world interaction practice in the English as a second language (ESL) classroom is described and discussed, and the ways in which dialogue journals answer this classroom need are detailed. A dialogue journal is an interactive, self-generated, cumulative and functional writing and reading exchange between teacher and student. The results are reported of a pilot study of the functional nature of the language in dialogue journals of adult Japanese as ESL students. The study used a system of language function analysis developed by Roger Shuy (1982). A definition of written fluency is offered and the relationship of language functions to written fluency is discussed. Methodological considerations and research suggestions are proposed. (Author/MSE)