diff --git a/main.lua b/main.lua
index b821766..9fdc73e 100644
--- a/main.lua
+++ b/main.lua
@@ -457,6 +457,9 @@ function IrcChatView:promptSendMessage()
     dialog = InputDialog:new{
         title = _("Send message"),
         input = "",
+        allow_newline = true,           -- allow multiline input
+        use_available_height = true,    -- expand input to available height
+        condensed = true,               -- reduce extra padding to maximize text area
         buttons = {
             {
                 {