These are notes from Life, the Universe, and Everything. Any misinformation is the fault of the note taker.

Q: how do in interpret appropriate tags to break up he said she said or to insert action?
– If you have more than he/she, start using names. Put in dialog beats you can change subject wit he/she said.
– Dialog is different as influenced by genera.
– You need to know your character. They talk a unique language that you can identify who is talking. Some will interview your character. Pick characters from movies or TV shows that I really like and have them represent my characters. Readers love what’s unique.
– If you intersperse dialog with actin you need to have it serve to say something about who they are or how they are interacting. It needs to drive that emotion and the plot.
– Talking heads: Use body language to break up dialog. A reader can lose track of a long dialog. Check out the book emotional thesaurus. It goes to different ways to show emotions by body behavior.
– When teaching dialog. ‘He said angrily’ is a form of telling. You might write it as: he slapped his hand to the table.
Q: How make dialog snappy and witty?
– Reading the book shades of magic > author does it well. She will let the first thing in her head comes out of their mouth. You don’t want to do too much of it. It allows times of characters to share utter honest.
– A snappy dialog is a form of characterization. Think of the most important points of the conversations in yuo8ur own life. Skip over the hello. And use those elements.
Q: how do I test my dialog on how it’s natural to see that it is real?
– One author would read the story out loud to me. Have someone read your dialog and note where they are struggling. Help s test an accent or humor.
– Some may have two friends reading a dialog between them.
– You can observe a scene you can hear that is in front of you and pretend you can create the dialog.
– Read it out loud.
– Write flash fiction, one to two pages, with only the dialog.
Q: how to make characters sound different.
– Don’t misspell words to build accents. It might be a word choice that is unique to the culture. Character voice / special spelling do it a couple of times in the beginning and then you can drop it off through the rest of the book. You can maybe an occasional spelling of that accent a few chapters in the future.
– As you get to hear the voice of your character. Keep notes of movie characters would say something that way.
– Sometimes one’s level of class will influence their word choice. An occupation will be influenced by phrasing as well as a certain hobby.
– Characters, who talk a lot, will tend to have a lot of run-on sentences.
– Grammar rules; Tense or point of view structure:
– Writers have a tendency to write more formally. Listen to the way other people speak so you can suck out the formality.
– Talking in the first person is present tense.
– Some people talk with their hands.
– Dialog is to represent speech.
Q: How does a writer write for a character that is not their age?
– Maybe interview those who are in the age group you want to write for.
– Maybe your friend’s kids. Pay attention to what they say or how they say. Listen to conversations around you and incorporate them into your own characters.
– Find beta readers: you might have sensitivity readers, for of meet the type of character your writing. Have a male read your book. He might say a guy would not say or do that. If it’s not accurate, ask how he would respond.
Q: How to write a character from other cultures.
– How to use transitions a dialog:
– The dialog might have an interrupted by an external source by a third party or event.
– You can end a dialog with a moment of impact.
What are the resources for grammar?
– Chicago manual style or grammar girl or other websites. Writing groups and beta readers. Be careful when you swap with a reader. Chose one who you trust. Swap with only the first chapter to see what they say or do.
– Most good editors will give free sample
Q: who should we read for good dialog?
– Use bold text and italics very sparingly. You need to be careful on writing to make sure character, descriptions and subtext are indicative of who is talking.
– A man called uvva: audiobook reader is wonderful
– Good authors for the dialog are Victoria shrub, Lemony Snicket, and Josh Sheeden. There is also ‘enthusiasm, by Pauli showman. Craft book getting into character. Has a chapter of subtext. Bradenlon Collins. Regency: George a hair.