Questions tagged [dialogue]
He said, she said, or what your characters are saying.
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Format for writing extended dialogue
Is it acceptable to write dialogue in a book in screenplay format? (writing the name of the speaker and a colon, followed by the text)
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How do I write dialogue separated with 'said' in the middle? [duplicate]
I'm studying for a test and don't know which one of the two following bits of dialogue is correct, and I haven't been able to find the answer online since I don't know what it is called.
"Hello,&...
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What is the proper formatting of type and quote marks when the main character talks aloud to himself, to someone else, or has internal dialogue?
I am authoring a novel. The main character interacts with others in oral conversation and will also have internal dialogue with himself, during the same conversation. Or he will talk aloud to an ...
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Am I overdoing it with the em dashes here?
I wrote two versions of the last paragraph for my scene (I included additional context since it also has an em dash). I need help deciding if the second version has too many em dashes and if I should ...
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Selectively mute character where language is a barrier
I have a mc that speaks only mandarin and is taken in by pirates that are mostly English speakers. He didn't speak much before being taken by them. So how would I write a character that is basically ...
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How should I include the sentence that a character would've said if they weren't interrupted in a screenplay?
I'm writing a screenplay with a scene were characters interrupt each other frequently. I think including the lines a character would've said if they weren't interrupted could help the actors and ...
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Different styles of narrative. Should you stick to the norm when starting out?
I noticed that many authors use different ways of conveying dialogue, from conventional to unquoted ramblings mixed with explanatory sentencing. Are these types of artistic license with punctuation ...
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How do I make my writing flow?
I'm in the skeleton stage, but to get into the rhythm of writing, I write short stories every few days. Upon reviewing them, I've realised that unless I am specifically aiming for abstract and vivid ...
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How to provide translations, moods, and registry in multilanguage dialog within an narration in English?
I am starting a serious writing project (a novel book from a story I once drafted as a TV show; I am not a script writer either). Furthermore I decided to write in English, which is not my native ...
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How would the "one good member" of an evil organization/culture see themselves?
I have a character that is the stereotypical "token good member of an evil organization". The organization is a brutal social darwinist one that sees nothing wrong with killing people and ...
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How do you handle "mid-word pauses" during dialogues in novels?
How do you handle "mid-word pauses" during dialogues in novels?
I rarely see it being done in novels, so I am not sure what are the various ways to format it. Could you tell me the most ...
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Is using diverse verbs on action beats to tag speech frowned upon?
Watching a video from an editor yesterday, she said authors should refrain from using too many verbs on action beats, instead relying mostly on "said" and "asked".
I think it is ...
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Length of flashbacks during a dialogue and how to handle it?
Sometimes, you have two characters talking to one another and then as a character is about to describe what happened to the past, a flashback can be seen, and this is done in movies often. Now, I am ...
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How to write a character who's better than you at sounding professional and doublespeak
I have a character who is an expert at using language to his advantage. Both in terms of doublespeak, subtle put downs and deliberately avoiding the point and making the conversation about something ...
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Spoken lists in dialogue
A character is speaking to another and calling out a number of items listed in their notes.
How can that dialogue be formatted to reflect a steady stream of speech? Not a bullet list or assigning a ...
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Easily understandable way to describe a character speaking with vocal fry?
Trying to have a character express hesitation and uncertainty with the tone of their voice. Like the verbal equivalent of an eye roll or an awkward smile. I'd like to say they're employing vocal fry, ...
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How to punctuate an interrupted question?
I have a convoluted sentence that I am struggling to get punctuated correctly.
Sam is talking with Perkins.
"This is costing me money," Perkins retorted. "And Triple A doesn't pay ...
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Writing apartment numbers in dialog
I am editing a mystery that takes place in an apartment building. Various apartment numbers are referenced often. 503 is where the murder takes place. Everyone always says each digit when referring to ...
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Can dialogue be put in the same paragraph as action text?
I'm a beginner writer, trying to learn fundementals. I'm editing some work now and I'm confused about proper formatting of paragraphs with dialogue.
I know that you should start a new paragraph when ...
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How to break dialog with narrative in a single sentence?
What is the most appealing way to insert a bit of narrative within dialog in a single sentence? For example:
“The unified realm of my childhood,” Lucy hoped to avoid discussing the reasons for its ...
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Is it possible to create unique voices in your story if all your characters use simple words and sentences in their dialogues?
Is it possible to create unique voices in your story if all your characters use simple words and sentences in their dialogues?
I believe that simple dialogues may not allow for the same level of ...
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Can I combine a character's talking and thoughts in contiguous lines of dialogue?
‘This is harder than I thought.’ Dakota mused, then said; “Shane is smart as a whip,” while watching Melody's face for her reaction. “I’m surprised he let me do this.”
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How do I make my dialogue seem less rushed?
I'm currently writing a book in which one of the characters talks about using sleeping pills, which he overdoses on at the end. This is a really important conversation because it is the first ...
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Is it possible to mix narration styles from a novel and from a theater play in the same book?
I am in the process of writing a novel made consisting of a series of 'real time' scenes with heavy usage of dialogues and some narration. Some scenes are more heavy on dialogues than others.
Is it ...
Ziad El Hachem
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Switching from one language to another using dialog tags
Is it ok to switch languages from one line to the other rapidly using dialog tags, and is there a better way to do this?
Here's an example without further due:
"Hey, this is not good." ...
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Multiple Character Dialogue & Action Formatting
I’m editing a first person story and I’m a bit stumped on one thing in particular. I’m not sure how to explain this in a non-confusing way.
Is it okay or correct to mix the dialogue and actions of one ...
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How do you shorten a long spell incantation in a comic book?
O water, garden of the soul, spirit of the moon, hallowed source of
life, I command you to converge before me, I, child of Gaia! Aqua!
Let's say I have to have my character say this long incantation ...
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What speech tags can you use for people who are mute?
What speech tags can you use for people who are mute? You usually use "he said" as speech tag when you introduce a dialogue when you want to introduce a speech, but can you use the generic &...
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Is there a word that can replace the phrase "said sarcastically"?
Suppose that,during a conversation in a book, one character says something sarcastically. As the author, I want the readers to know that the character was being sarcastic, but I do not want to say ...
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Is it okay for the male and female characters in your story to sound the same?
So my philosophy is "if you can't do it, don't bother", and I couldn't write realistic female dialogues so I decided to not bother at all with gender differences and make them sound the same....
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Writing a third person limited protagonist without any inner dialogue
I want to write a protagonist that thinks as I do; that is to say, without any inner monologue. I don't even think in images either. It's just abstract thoughts for me. If a place reminds me of my ...
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How do you resolve and address a conflict that escalated quickly and should you even address it?
How do you resolve and address a conflict that escalated quickly and should you even address it?
I wrote a scene and on re-reading it, it didn't make sense and just distracted the readers from the ...
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How do I punctuate two immediate interruptions with em dashes?
The following contains incomplete sentences:
One day, I’m going to become a car designer. Or maybe a cop. Or maybe the president.
As a result, I'd like to replace them with em dashes. My guess is ...
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What is the best way to "jump in" to the middle of a conversation in writing?
I'm writing a scene where there is a time skip, and the reader catches only the end of a piece of dialogue when we jump back in. It reads something like this:
By the time the sun had set, she had ...
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Need help in figuring out how to write dialogue as if my mouth was full (+18)
I saw a similar question, but it didn't really have the answer I was seeking and it wasn't concerned with the same thing — sucking someone, thus the full mouth. I saw an answer there that suggests ...
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How to present an inner monologue interspersed with passive thoughts
Is there a commonly accepted - or expected - way for handling a passage where a broken innner monologue is interspersed with thoughts that do not quite qualify as an 'inner conversation'? For example
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How to/when to tag quoted text in a dialogue
Is it acceptable to leave out non-conversational tags when writing a dialogue between two people. To take an example
"I waited for you for a whole hour!" said Joan, as she entered the
room.
...
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Handling language barriers
I am trying to write the story for an RPG I will make in the future. The world itself is huge with multiple continents and landmasses, but the current story takes place on the main four continents. ...
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Any tips on writing scenes between characters where there is no action?
I mostly write fantasy, and I need to improve writing scenes between characters that are not action. For example, a scene where two characters are eating breakfast and talking about training later ...
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What can be said among the lost on Mars that alters one's mood?
Mars has had around a dozen outposts in that time. What interesting thing can change the mood of a group of lost travelers on Mars?
It can be said in general or with a few lines of story build up.
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Dialog during sex scenes
The question is whether the dialog should be written at all if the dialog during a sex scene doesn't serve any purpose. There's also this notion that a writer might feel shame when writing the dialog ...
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Information dumping in the first few chapters?
Is it a good idea to do this? I just started writing and I dislike dialogue heavy texts so I have grown to write moderately descriptive stories instead; people have, however, told me that I should not ...
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How do you write verbal abuse without it coming off as cheesy?
I have a character who's being abused by his father. While most of the abuse is only implied/referenced and readers instead see the fallout or emotional/physical effects of it, there are a few scenes ...
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Struggling to 'find the voice' of a character who is conflicted when speaking to a person - how can I do this?
In the story I'm writing, the character behaves differently when they're spending time with their mother - they are conflicted. They idolise their mother on the one hand, but as they have grown up (in ...
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Struggling at writing dialogue. What to do?
Let’s get this out of the way. Dialogue, much like characterisation, has never been my strongest suit as a writer. I’m brilliant at writing prose. Action setpieces are a joy for me to write. And ...
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How do you show emotionlessness through a character's action and dialogue?
Accurately portraying a character's emotions is a huge part of getting an audience to like them as a person. But the character I am writing is essentially a living computer. They have no emotions to ...
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How to describe when someone hesitates before speaking?
I find myself repeatedly saying "he/she hesitated" when I feel like there's something else I could say. I've been experimenting but with the character in question, all I can think of is, &...
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When adapting a novel to a movie or a comic book, how do you choose which dialogues to pick and should you modify them at all?
When adapting a novel to a movie or a comic book, how do you choose which dialogues to pick and should you modify them at all? I am thinking that you can't just put all the dialogues, but which ...
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What are some alternatives to the thought bubble?
I found these panels and they seem to be used as text bubbles. Is this the case and what do we call them? I am wondering if there's a specific word for these.
https://m-mimima.tumblr.com/post/...
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Should a question mark be used after an em dash that abruptly ends a sentence?
I looked through a number of the site's questions to find an answer to my problem. The closest thing I could find was this:
Is it acceptable to place a dash after a question mark?
However, my question ...
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