Writing Dialogue for Fiction

1. Writing Dialogue for Fiction Academic Writing II – Narrative, Poetry and Drama

2. Formatting • Dialogue follows specific formatting in English fiction (this will be different from formatting in Drama). • It is important to use the formatting as indicated, otherwise you will lose marks for grammar/punctuation as indicated in the rubric.

3. Dialogue Sample 1 “I think you’ll find this is very easy,” Rob said. • Starting with the opening (first) quotation mark, you include all things actually said inside it, then end with a COMMA followed by the closing (second) quotation mark. • You MUST have the comma before the quotation mark. • This is used when the individual who is speaking is identified AFTER what is said. • In other words, the verb follows the exhortation/statement. • The sentence itself ends with a period.

4. Dialogue Sample 2 Stanley said, “You’re right, Rob. This is easy.” • In this example, the speaker is identified first. • The verb precedes the exhortation/statement. • The comma precedes the quotation marks, following the verb (or adverb if there was one) and is followed by a space and the opening (first) quotation mark. • The dialogue is concluded with a period, and followed by the closing (second) quotation mark.

5. Dialogue Sample 3 “But Rob,” Ricki asked, “what happens if we divide the sentence?” • In some cases, we start the speaking and the provide the verb, then finish the statement or statements. • Introduce the opening (first) quotation mark and end the first part of your statement with a comma and closing (second) quotation mark. • Indicate your speaker and verb, then place a comma after the verb (or adverb), use a space, then have the opening quotation mark, the rest of the statement, and the appropriate full-stop punctuation (in this case a question mark) followed by the closing quotation mark.

6. Dialogue Sample 4 “What if our dialogue is a question?” asked Poppy. • The question mark will appear at the end of the spoken dialogue, but not the end of the sentence (except as noted below). • The overall sentence will still end in an period if the verb follows the end of the dialogue. • If the verb precedes the dialogue or the dialogue is split, the question mark comes at the end and the rules in the preceding examples apply. • For example: • “What,” asked Poppy, “if our dialogue is a question?” • Poppy asked, “What if I our dialogue is a question?”

7. Dialogue Sample 5 “That is an excellent question!” exclaimed Rob. • The exclamation mark follows the same rules for the question mark as noted in Dialogue Sample 4.

8. Dialogue Sample 6 “Great! Now I know how to format and punctuate dialogue.” • Not completely. • In the event that there is no speaker or the identity of the speaker is known through context, you do not need to provide a verb or identify the speaker. • This means you can have a sentence like the one above. • In this case, we can gather emotion from the first part of the sentence (exclamation mark/point). • We can conclude the second part with a period as it ends the sentence and dialogue, and close it off with the closing quotation marks.

9. Formatting Dialogue • Always have dialogue start on a new line if it interrupts the action or another speaker. The gun in her hand hung limply at her side, but as I looked at it, she brought it up and pointed it directly at me. “Don’t try anything smart. You’re not faster than a bullet.” • If the dialogue and action go together, start a new sentence together: She lifted the gun up from her waist, pointing it at me and said, “Don’t try anything smart. You’re not faster than a bullet.”

10. Formatting Dialogue • Keep the dialogue as a paragraph so long as the first speaker continues without being interrupted. “You’re not going to kill me, doll,” I said. “You’re smarter than that. Besides, there is nothing to be gained in killing me, and a lot to lose. For starters, you’re in my date book as my last scheduled appointment, which means you’re the first person the police will look at.” “You mean this date book?” She held up my black book and I swore under my breath.

11. Formatting Dialogue • Indent dialogue using the TAB key. “Dialogue should be indented?” asked Veronica. “Yes Veronica,” replied Rob, “if you are going to start a new sentence of dialogue, you should press the TAB key to give it an indent.” “Okay, I’ll make sure to do that,” she responded.

12. Formatting Dialogue • If it is someone’s thoughts, it is more common to use italics following the same rules as the above samples WITHOUT the quotation marks. I’m not sure I understand this, thought Jack, but the sample makes things a lot clearer. Thank god for samples!

13. Formatting Dialogue • If there are only two people speaking, you do not need to indicate who the speaker is in each line. It follows logically that people will take turns speaking, and each new line of dialogue will be attributed to the other speaker. “I just found out I was accepted into Beida!” exclaimed Lucy. “Congratulations,” Rob said. “You worked hard and deserve it.” “Thanks Rob.” “You’re welcome. Make sure your boyfriend takes you out for a nice dinner to celebrate.” “He already has a reservation at a really nice place.”

14. Dialogue For Drama • The dialogue above is a reflection of dialogue formatting for fiction. • It is not the same as Drama. • I will provide a PPT on Drama formatting later in the term.