tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post1844128548694829420..comments2024-03-28T12:40:14.627+00:00Comments on MOODY WRITING: Differentiating Through Dialoguemooderinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-59236405461282502552013-04-05T18:52:27.889+01:002013-04-05T18:52:27.889+01:00@LD - will be over promptly (is it cake?)@LD - will be over promptly (is it cake?)mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-52503689028283103112013-04-05T18:02:57.023+01:002013-04-05T18:02:57.023+01:00Thanks, Mood. I'm always looking for ways to m...Thanks, Mood. I'm always looking for ways to make my characters' voices more distinctive.<br /><br />Also, please stop by my blog when you get a change. I left something for you there.LD Mastersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01202135756299574972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-18533607495511311272013-04-05T17:39:15.124+01:002013-04-05T17:39:15.124+01:00@Rachna - the reader being able to tell who's ...@Rachna - the reader being able to tell who's speaking immediately is improtant no matter how you achieve.<br /><br />@sassy - thanks.<br />mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-32536383691315599842013-04-05T16:33:46.597+01:002013-04-05T16:33:46.597+01:00yep one of the hardest things to do in writing - d...yep one of the hardest things to do in writing - distinguishing which character is speaking. Some good ideas here Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-87895368254629557832013-04-05T13:55:18.048+01:002013-04-05T13:55:18.048+01:00Great post,Mooderino. I use a lot of dialogue tags...Great post,Mooderino. I use a lot of dialogue tags, but in my last book I have tried to keep them to a minimum. I would love to give a few characters a unique style of speaking, but so far have not done so.Rachna Chhabriahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16900999965919504282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-74628815430631665202013-04-05T10:17:28.854+01:002013-04-05T10:17:28.854+01:00@Jeremy - often tags come at the end of dialogue s...@Jeremy - often tags come at the end of dialogue so if you can identify the speaker before then you're ahead of the game.<br /><br />@Lynda - hopefully.<br /><br />@Trisha - I'm mainly talking about how to identify the person speaking. You need to use other techniques to keep quiet characters present in the scene.<br /><br />@Elise - Some people can do it really well, but more don't.<br /><br />@Shannon - it can definitely pull you out of the story.<br /><br />@Jenna - it helps to have different breeds to do that. If you had six Yorkshire terriers making each distinct is the tricky part.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-35362058458141014562013-04-05T09:59:54.461+01:002013-04-05T09:59:54.461+01:00@Leanne - my pleasure.
@Connie - glad to have you...@Leanne - my pleasure.<br /><br />@Connie - glad to have you here.<br /><br />@mshatch - voice can come from more than how someone speaks. Attitude and focus help a lot in defining someone.<br /><br />@Nancy - that would certainly mark them out in a crowd.<br />mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-78604451930753618552013-04-05T09:46:48.925+01:002013-04-05T09:46:48.925+01:00Great points. I recently wrote a novella whose mai...Great points. I recently wrote a novella whose main character was a dog. As she met other dog characters, it was interesting to listen for their voices and the difference in what they'd say, making a Great Dane speak in short gruff sentences, while a Yorkshire terrier yapped on and on. JennaQuentinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794730025120308897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-67471653950475635312013-04-05T09:30:38.182+01:002013-04-05T09:30:38.182+01:00True, too many accents or verbal tics can be obnox...True, too many accents or verbal tics can be obnoxious in a character. When it's hard for me to read through them, I'm removed from the story. There are so many ways to convey the character without it.<br /><br />Shannon at <a href="http://thewarriormuse.com/" rel="nofollow">The Warrior Muse</a>Shannon Lawrencehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934641808195675935noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-57940123186200024252013-04-05T08:49:59.336+01:002013-04-05T08:49:59.336+01:00Accents are really hard to pull off without soundi...Accents are really hard to pull off without sounding forced or contrived. But some writers can pull it off and it does add flavor to the writing. Elise Fallsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14734537117333738468noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-71192645747969033912013-04-05T07:45:55.404+01:002013-04-05T07:45:55.404+01:00Good point! I do love dialogue a lot. Also, some p...Good point! I do love dialogue a lot. Also, some people just don't talk as much, and that's part of their personality, so you have to find other ways to make them "them" :)Trishahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16927558937796802496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-8007038323157123392013-04-05T06:48:47.688+01:002013-04-05T06:48:47.688+01:00Yes, and this also makes dialogue interesting!Yes, and this also makes dialogue interesting!Lynda R Young as Elle Cardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09975442291393246148noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-39321621764539899562013-04-05T05:16:37.485+01:002013-04-05T05:16:37.485+01:00true enough!
dialogue tags are great but best when...true enough!<br />dialogue tags are great but best when used sparinglyJeremy Bateshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00877532315856151843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-84208046003050939522013-04-05T03:14:35.718+01:002013-04-05T03:14:35.718+01:00Watchu talkin' 'bout? Y'all caint neve...Watchu talkin' 'bout? Y'all caint never tell where I done come from if I given you a roadmap! <br /><br />On the contrary, whereas one may distinguish a certain region of origin, a specific local could not be comprehended.<br /><br />--Just excuse my silliness!Chancelethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12880082145266359126noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-4699226990295007262013-04-05T01:26:55.917+01:002013-04-05T01:26:55.917+01:00I was just reading somewhere else about how import...I was just reading somewhere else about how important it is for our characters to have distinctive voices. It is definitely something I'll be working on once I finish this first draft. mshatchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06308916014310536449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-27038610459060946932013-04-05T00:36:20.575+01:002013-04-05T00:36:20.575+01:00Ya, I'm right there with ya! Excellent D!
Con...Ya, I'm right there with ya! Excellent D! <br />Connie<br />Checkin' in from the A to Z Challenge. <br /><a href="http://www.peanutbutterandwhine.com" rel="nofollow">Peanut Butter and Whine</a>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02005608252199574133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-31064452318998832182013-04-04T23:36:28.338+01:002013-04-04T23:36:28.338+01:00Thank you for this helpful article.Thank you for this helpful article.Author Leanne Dyckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12886667518427660865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-36637490974892354032013-04-04T23:24:01.476+01:002013-04-04T23:24:01.476+01:00@Julie - Thanks and you're welcome.
@Michael ...@Julie - Thanks and you're welcome.<br /><br />@Michael - it's when you have more than two people talking that it can get messy.<br /><br />@Maurice - if you can do it without accents and colloquialisms it's even more powerful.<br /><br />@M Pax - the problem comes when you have to do that over a long time. Makes the character a bit mechanical.<br /><br />@Sharon - a really accurate representation of accent comes through syntax and rhythm. <br /><br />@J Keith - there are no hard and fast rules, but the more threads you have the harder it is to keep track.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-4719668279583761452013-04-04T22:59:35.906+01:002013-04-04T22:59:35.906+01:00I find accents for too many characters distracting...I find accents for too many characters distracting in a novel, particularly when it serves no purpose other than to illustrate that the writer knows a few accents. <br />I do think someone's views on things would make them stand out more as a character than their accent. As far as going off topic, unfortunately, that is my bane in writing dialogue is I often let my characters go off topicAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09068010284145260558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-60817915985819710682013-04-04T22:03:59.544+01:002013-04-04T22:03:59.544+01:00Hi. I have this problem in my novel. I'm avoid...Hi. I have this problem in my novel. I'm avoiding the phonetic spelling of accents, and use an occasional foreign word instead, but wonder if this is enough! Thanks for the follow at my site! Sharon Himslhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08835934582653243661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-46785149204985107222013-04-04T21:34:28.510+01:002013-04-04T21:34:28.510+01:00I took a workshop once where it was recommended to...I took a workshop once where it was recommended to write out a lexicon for each character. Every job/vocation uses different words.M Paxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14096697282530998519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-58635169243395537692013-04-04T21:02:33.121+01:002013-04-04T21:02:33.121+01:00This is a hard thing to do, but with accents and c...This is a hard thing to do, but with accents and colloquialisms it's very powerfulMaurice Mitchellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15338165486757095191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-24678003781570192592013-04-04T21:01:19.369+01:002013-04-04T21:01:19.369+01:00Sometimes when I'm having my work proofread, t...Sometimes when I'm having my work proofread, they point out talking heads. That's when I know I've got to start adding the whole "he said, she said" thing in.Michael Offutt, Phantom Readerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10557969104886174930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-36006003376200935052013-04-04T20:31:37.216+01:002013-04-04T20:31:37.216+01:00Loved your post, yeah? Great tips on tags vs. cha...Loved your post, yeah? Great tips on tags vs. character traits. And thanks so much for visiting our blog! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00088847302697137912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1061937348591302555.post-84236649526722996982013-04-04T20:29:32.612+01:002013-04-04T20:29:32.612+01:00@Suzanne - thanks, glad you liked it. Wish you'...@Suzanne - thanks, glad you liked it. Wish you'd left a link so I could visit you back.mooderinohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01523337588830695638noreply@blogger.com