Rules When Making Dialogues

July 12, 2009 | Posted by John Halasz

Novel Writer for Hire

Dialogues of different speakers should be written in different paragraphs. It should have proper indentation and started with the use of quotation marks. Double quotations should be used (“). It is imperative to put commas and periods inside those quotation marks.

Example: “Do not leave,” he ordered, “or I will have you captured.”

If a speaker’s dialogue extends to another paragraph, then do not put close quotation marks on the first paragraph. On the second paragraph, you begin with open quotation marks and end with a close quotation.

Using terms such as “he said,” “she said” are helpful indicators that will prevent readers from getting confused. A shift from “he said” to “he yelled” or to other more rigid words is an effective way to increase tension; however, it is best that the dialogue stimulates the effect devoid of such comments.

Speech is not the only component of a dialogue – action is as well. It also plays a very significant role. Readers want to know when the speakers halts briefly, where they’re eyes are focused, what they’re hand gestures are, what their reactions are. This is an important ingredient in order for you to be able to convey your message more effectively to them, such as in the case when the characters words and real emotions are conflicting. Their actions will “speak” more than the words they impart verbally.

Try articulating your written dialogues and make sure that they sound natural, including the rhymes and rhythms. If it doesn’t, then you will have to revise.

If your objective is to emphasize dialect and accent to the readers, applying the appropriate rhythm and choice of words will do. Spelling words phonetically can create confusion.

Italicize your character’s exact unspoken thoughts.

How does he run so fast? he asked himself.

However, if you have them paraphrased, you can use your regular font.

Dave wondered how he runs so fast.

It is not advisable to give readers a long series of thoughts because of the discomfort it can give them. Shifting a word in a line of italics to regular Roman is a good option for emphasis. He will never forget her.

Categories: Fiction Writing, Novel Writing, Short Story Writing | Tags: Creating Characters for Novels, Creating Characters for Short Stories, Creating Fiction Characters, How to Write Novel Characters | Comments Off