Writing Tips

Writing Tips

Punctuating Dialogue

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➸ “This is a sentence.”

➸ “This is a sentence with a dialogue tag at the end,” she said.

➸ “This,” he said, “is a sentence split by a dialogue tag.”

➸ “This is a sentence,” she said. “This is a new sentence. New sentences are capitalized.”

➸ “This is a sentence followed by an action.” He stood. “They are separate sentences because he did not speak by standing.”

➸ She said, “Use a comma to introduce dialogue. The quote is capitalized when the dialogue tag is at the beginning.”

➸ “Use a comma when a dialogue tag follows a quote,” he said.

“Unless there is a question mark?” she asked.

“Or an exclamation point!” he answered. “The dialogue tag still remains uncapitalized because it’s not truly the end of the sentence.”

➸ “Periods and commas should be inside closing quotations.”

➸ “Hey!” she shouted, “Sometimes exclamation points are inside quotations.”

However, if it’s not dialogue exclamation points can also be “outside”!

➸ “Does this apply to question marks too?” he asked.

If it’s not dialogue, can question marks be “outside”? (Yes, they can.)

➸ “This applies to dashes too. Inside quotations dashes typically express—“

“Interruption” — but there are situations dashes may be outside.

➸ “You’ll notice that exclamation marks, question marks, and dashes do not have a comma after them. Ellipses don’t have a comma after them either…” she said.

➸ “My teacher said, ‘Use single quotation marks when quoting within dialogue.’”

➸ “Use paragraph breaks to indicate a new speaker,” he said.

“The readers will know it’s someone else speaking.”

➸ “If it’s the same speaker but different paragraph, keep the closing quotation off.

“This shows it’s the same character continuing to speak.”

Me right now 😂

“Show Don’t Tell”? Not Always. Here’s When to Use Summary.

I was inspired to write this post after getting a great anonymous question in my Ask: “What’s your opinion on the whole ‘show don’t tell’ advice? Do you have any tips for when to show and when to tell?”

Here’s my response:

I honestly think that “show don’t tell” is one of the most over-quoted and least-understood pieces of writing advice out there.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, “show don’t tell” means that instead of explaining or telling something to your reader (“Sheila was reckless and impulsive”), you should show Sheila’s impulsiveness through action or dialogue. For example, “Even though her rent was overdue, after she got her paycheck Sheila spent $400 on an antique toilet.” This would allow the reader to draw the conclusion that Sheila was impulsive for themselves, rather than being told.

Theoretically, this is great advice for new fiction writers, who, left to their own devices, tend to write their stories entirely in “telling” mode.

But summary (telling) has a place in fiction as well, and it’s an important one.

Keep reading

How to Pick a Point of View for Stories

Figuring out the point of view (POV) for your next story can seem daunting. It changes how you convey your plot and the emotional themes driving it. These are a few ways to narrow your options.

1. Consider the Pros and Cons of Each POV

There are absolutely pros and cons for different points of view. They accomplish different things for each story even if they feel vaguely the same at first. When you’ve got a story in mind, think of these factors to potentially pick a POV.

First-Person Pros and Cons

Pros

Your reader will have an intimate connection with your protagonist because they’ll read the protagonist’s thoughts and feelings in “real time.”

A specific emotional tension is possible the protagonist is narrating everything through their personal lens/biases and the reader doesn’t get inside any other character’s head to learn their actual motivations/emotions.

A super distinct narrative voice can pick up the pace for readers in the first 100 pages of a novel

Cons

You don’t get to jump between characters, which isn’t helpful if you’ve got a well-developed cast of characters you want to spend time with.

It’s easy to have a repetitive sentence structure due to phrasing like, “I said,” “I though,” “I want,” etc.

Readers don’t get to emotionally connect with other characters on the same intimate level, which may limit the themes you want to write about.

Third-Person Pros and Cons

3rd Person Omniscient POV Pros

The reader gets into each character’s mind, so there’s no bias in the narration.

You can jump between characters in a single scene, allowing a multi-dimensional view of the main plot’s journey or lesson.

You can switch characters to reveal more of your world to your reader, which is perfect for writers who do deep worldbuilding before they start writing.

3rd Person Omniscient POV Cons

Readers may struggle to form an allegiance to a character because there’s so many giving their points of view.

The hook for a story may come much later than normal if multiple characters need to be introduced through narration before the inciting incident.

If you’re writing a longer story, you’ll have to chart the primary plot line, then each character’s individual arcs to understand how they intersect and where you’ll jump POVs.

3rd Person Limited POV Pros

You get quality time with multiple characters.

You can create an unreliable narrator within a cast of characters that your reader gets equal time with.

The quality time with each character can make it more emotional when a character faces a challenge.

3rd Person Limited POV Cons

You’re forced to follow only one character’s perspective at a time. There’s no jumping between minds in a scene.

Each character will have a personal bias regarding whatever situation they’re in, so they’ll need individual goals and opinions too. You’ll need more character building before or during writing your story.

You’ll still need to chart each character’s arc to understand how it pushes the primary plot forward, what role each character plays, why they’re essential for the reader to spend time with, and how they’ll grow individually.

2. Think About What Matters Most For Your Story

What is the purpose of your story? What do you want to achieve with it or how do you want to practice your craft with it?

You could want to try out a story with multiple narrators. That boils your options down to 3rd person omniscient or limited. Easy!

Do you want to write a protagonist that your readers feel bonded with? That could mean your story happens in first-person POV. It could also work with 3rd person limited, depending on which character recurs most often.

Maybe you have a few characters in mind for a story but only one of them seems interesting enough to vocalize the story. Pick that character for your first-person POV. The other characters may be important, but if their voices aren’t distinct, your reader will just be bored when they’re narrating. 

3. Go With Your Gut

Ultimately, you have to go with your gut. Pick the POV that makes the most sense and write the story. You can always go back and rewrite it in another POV if it feels like the current one isn’t working for whatever reason.

Yes, it’s a pain to do that kind of rewriting, but it’s such a relief to know your themes/message/plot will come across the right way. It’s always possible to make that change, even if you finished a novel-length manuscript.

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The more practice you give yourself with the various points of view, the more comfortable you'll feel when picking one for your future stories. Even practicing with flash fiction will flex your creative muscles enough to help you learn when each POV is most useful for your work.

“To make the right choices in life, you have to get in touch with your soul. To do this, you need to experience solitude, which most people are afraid of, because in the silence you hear the truth and know the solutions.”

— Deepak Chopra

Saying I'm sorry...

... as an apology

... as a confession

... as a manipulation

... as a truce

... as a last attempt

... as an ask for forgiveness

... as a sign of respect

... as a duty

... as a goodbye

Saying I'm sorry…

angrily

desperately

anxiously

quietly

insolent

guiltily

unapologetic

passionately

honestly

*I'm sorry* - Apology Starters

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