Mastering Dialogue Creation
By: Angela Betts
When embarking on the journey of writing a novel or short story, the task of crafting dialogue can be daunting. However, the maze of punctuation and quotation mark formatting can be navigated smoothly by adhering to a few key rules. The task of dialogue formatting may seem complex, but with consistency and a touch of convention, it becomes intuitive. Here are nine essential rules to breathe life into your dialogue:
Spoken Words: When a character speaks, their words should be enclosed within double quotation marks. Example: “Let’s embark on a journey to the beach.”
Dialogue Tags: Dialogue tags serve to attribute lines to characters. They reside outside the quotation marks, while punctuation marks stay within. Example: “The sight was horrifying,” Karen narrated. If the dialogue tag precedes the dialogue, the comma comes before the first quotation mark. Example: Karen narrated, “The sight was horrifying.” If the dialogue ends with an exclamation or a question, the following tags start in lowercase, while the punctuation remains within the quotation marks. Example: “The sight was horrifying!” she narrated.
Actions: Actions that occur before or after the dialogue should be in a separate sentence. Example: Daniel gasped. “Are you leaving this world?”
Quotes within Dialogue: When a character quotes someone else within their dialogue, single quotation marks are used. Example: Sam’s tears began to flow. “When you said, ‘I never want to see you again!’ it felt like a dagger to my heart.”
New Speaker, New Paragraph: Every time a new speaker is introduced, a new paragraph begins. If the speaker performs an action after speaking, it stays in the same paragraph. A new line in the next paragraph indicates a new speaker. Example: “Danny, I need your eyes on this,” Captain Mark commanded. He pointed towards the photograph on his desk. “My God,” Captain Mark whispered under his breath. His gaze shifted from the photograph to his empty coffee cup, signaling the beginning of a long night.
Action Interruptions: If an action interrupts a dialogue, the first letter of the second fragment starts in lowercase. Example: “At the end of the day,” he roared, “there’s always room for dessert!”
Long Monologues: When a character delivers a lengthy monologue, the rules of dialogue formatting slightly change. The opening quotation marks are placed at the beginning of each paragraph, but the closing quotation marks are only placed at the end of the final paragraph. Example: Jasper inhaled deeply and began his tale. “Sharks, they’re ruthless creatures. Their sole purpose: to kill. Ever encountered a shark in the open water? Probably not, because if you had, you wouldn’t be here to tell the tale. “I once came face to face with a great white. I was scuba diving, searching for starfish for my ailing wife who believes they bring good luck. But as they say, one man’s treasure is another man’s terror. Suddenly, I found myself staring into the eyes of death. My heart skipped a beat. I froze. I knew it was the end."
The Role of Em Dashes in Dialogue Em dashes, not to be mistaken with hyphens, serve to indicate interruptions and sudden endings in dialogue. When using em dashes in dialogue formatting, they should be positioned within the quotation marks. Example: Bethany started to speak. “I just thought we could—” “I don’t want to hear it,” Abigail interrupted.
The Use of Ellipses in Dialogue When crafting dialogue that concludes with an ellipsis, refrain from adding a comma or any extra punctuation. Ellipses are utilized to indicate a dialogue fading away. Example: Lindsay whistled softly. “I guess this is the end of the line…” she said, her voice fading into silence.
https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-format-dialogue-in-your-novel-or-short-story