Dialogue is important to our stories. Without it our story could be rather boring to the readers. Dialogue can add emotion such as anger, excitement, humor, etc. It can lend mystery, suspense, and terror. Dialogue can provide our stories with backbone. So it stands to reason we need to get it right.
When we edit our work, there are some things for which we need to watch. For instance, explanations that are outside the dialogue. These are generally emotions. Try cutting them and see if it reads better. If it doesn't, you may need to rewrite your dialogue.
We all know about the -ly words. Most of these are associated with adjectives which describe an emotion (angrily, lovingly, etc.). Cut as many as you can of these or rewrite it. Not all can be eliminated, but do try to eliminate as many as you can.
Speaker attributions are something you need to analyze closely. Are any of them physical impossibilities? Example: "Call me tonight," she smiled. This type of attribution can brand you as an amateur. Are there any verbs other than "said"? There can be an occasional exception, but for the most part "said" is all you need. Speaker attributions are for clarifying who is speaking. You may be able to eliminate them altogether or replace with beats. Do not overdo the beats because they can be distracting. A balance of attributions and beats is preferred.
Do not start a paragraph with a speaker attribution. Always start with dialogue and place the attribution at the first comfortable spot. Example: "Stand back," he said, "or I'll shoot." Also make sure you put the pronoun before the verb (he said). If you have several characters speaking in a scene, you can have a string of "saids" which can be monotonous. Using a beat can solve this problem.
Remember! Ellipsis is for gaps or a character's voice trailing off. An example of a gap would be when you are showing one side of a telephone conversation. Dashes are used to show an interruption.
When writing dialogue, paragraph more often, especially when it is something you want to stand out or you have new speakers.
I hope these pointers help as you self-edit your work.
Keep wrting!
Faye M. Tollison
Author of: To Tell the Truth
Upcoming books: The Bible Murders
Sarah's Secret
Member of: Sisters In Crime
Writers On The Move
www.fayemtollison.com
www.fayetollison.blogspot.com
www.fmtoll.wordpress.com
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)
Have you thought about writing a novel?
November is National Novel Writing Month, also known as
NaNoWriMo. This event has been held since 1999. About 300,000 people are
expected to participate this year.
You can sign up online and it’s free. At the end of November, you upload your novel
and if you meet the 50,000 minimum word count, you win prizes!
It sounds like fun. Write a novel in 30 days. Not a novel you’ve already started, but
something brand new and fresh. Don’t worry about editing for proper grammar and
punctuation. Just write and worry about the rest later. You can keep a copy and
continue working on it as long as you like.
People all over the world participate in NaNoWriMo . You
might be able to find a group in your area. Some of them meet in person to
write and socialize.
On the website of NaNoWriMo, you will find the rules, the
history of the event, forums and more. The website will be updated soon for 2012.
The information regarding last year’s event is still up if you want to take a
look and get an idea of what to expect.
Hope to see you there in November!
Debbie A. Byrne has a B.S. in Mass Communication with a
minor in History. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and
Illustrators (SCBWI) and is currently working on her first children’s book.
Writing and Marketing with The Muse Online Writers Conference
While you might be thinking you can't afford a week-long conference, you'd be wrong.
The Muse Online Writers' Conference is absolutely FREE!
Whether you're a newbie or your experienced, whether your book is published or your just writing it, whether you're going the traditional route or the self-publishing route, there's something in this conference for you.
I co-instructed a marketing workshop last October with Maggie Ball and the attendees got some great information that they were able to use right away. All the workshops are geared to help you move forward.
The conference starts October 8th and runs through the 14th. So, if you're not registered yet, do it right now - the extended registration ends September 30th. Don't dilly-dally.
Just click on the link (registration is on the left sidebar):
http://themuseonlinewritersconference.com
Hope to see you there!
~~~~~~~~~~
To keep up with writing and marketing information, along with Free webinars - signup for The Writing World newsletter on the right top sidebar!
Karen Cioffi
Multi-award Winning Author, Freelance/Ghostwriter, Editor, Marketer
Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012
Karen Cioffi Professional Writing Services
http://karencioffifreelancewriter.com/karen-cioffi-writing-services/
Jumping Head First into Publishing
Guest Post by Bonnie Rokke Tinnes
Several times
during my life, especially after I graduated from Bemidji State University in
Minnesota as an English and Russian teacher, I wanted to be a writer, but
something always got in the way of the time and energy I needed to actually sit
down and produce something of worth. I taught school for a while. Then my husband and I were married and I worked
on our farm. We had children who took a
lot of my time. After my husband became
ill, I returned to school, attaining a nursing degree from the University of
North Dakota just in time to take over as breadwinner and caregiver.
We were lucky
when I was given a job as a registered nurse in a Minnesota state hospital for
mentally ill adults in the middle of lake country, which was the one thing that
made moving and taking the job inviting.
The demanding job stressed and stretched my nerves and energy to their
max so when I was home, I’d sit down at the computer and try to change my
thoughts and mood by writing something of worth, something that was
beautiful. Writing had become a survival
technique taking me away from the harsh realities of what seemed a cruel and
heartless world.
Lucky me, I
bought my first computer a couple of years after I moved here in 1995. After I learned how to use it, I found it the
best tool a writer could ever have. It
was easy to write, delete, cut, copy, and paste, quite different from sitting
at the typewriter ruining paper with typos and other mistakes.
It was after
retirement that I became more serious about writing. Having a lot of time on my hands, I began
organizing all those pages of thoughts I had worked on for years, many about my
childhood and growing up in the middle fifties on a farm in northern Minnesota.
 |
| Book signing Franklin Arts Center, Brainerd, Minnesota |
I hired someone
to edit my work and began writing Growing
Up Margaret, a story about three sixth grade girls growing up in rural
Minnesota in the mid- fifties who become best friends. Following that, I wrote Margaret Inc, a story about the girls’ seventh grade year, which is
my second book in a trilogy I plan about Margaret. These books appeal to anyone
from middle school to those who grew up in the mid- fifties because they
portray the culture, setting, and time in history realistically.
During my lifetime, I had also written
numerous poems and organized some of my nature poems into a book called Snow Presents and Poems. I also plan to organize more of my poetry
for future publication.
Not getting any
younger and having all my poems and stories in my computer or on copy paper, I
began to dream of having them published.
I knew that if I didn’t do something, all my work would be in vain if
something happened to me, and I wanted to leave these stories to my
grandsons. If I wanted my dream, I
needed to jump in myself and try something because I was finding it almost
impossible to get my foot in the door of a publisher, and I didn’t have time to
waste.
During July, 2010, I attended a
Highlights Foundation writers’ workshop at Chautauqua Institution, Chautauqua,
New York. It was an educational and rewarding week, and I learned what I needed
to improve my writing for publication. The manuscript I submitted at Chautauqua to my
mentor, published children’s author Helen
Hemphill from Tennessee, was Margaret Inc. I was pleased and encouraged when she said
that my writing was almost there and would just take some tweaking. She also said that I had strong characters
and plot. What I needed was to use more
dialogue and to show more and tell less what was taking place in the story. Hemphill’s works include The Adventurous Deeds of Deadwood Jones, Runaround, and Long Gone Daddy.
I probably
rushed the submission to a publisher when I returned home. It came back to me with a note that said that
my writing was probably too Midwestern to sell nationally. The editor suggested I publish it locally.
With the help of
my editor, I continued to perfect my writing.
Since he was older, I also enlisted a younger reader for a second
opinion. Between the two of them, I was
able to tweak and polish my writing, making it acceptable for publishing.
I studied
published books and learned how to set up the title page, dedication page, and
all the other introductory pages. I
learned how to set up page breaks so a new chapter began at the top of its own
page. I even went to the internet for an ISBN number and also uploaded my
manuscript to the Copyright Office, paying for the whole thing electronically. I was learning and doing things I’d never
done before and even enjoying it.
When I felt
everything was ready, I uploaded my book to Amazon.com for Kindle, and it
worked. Once it was uploaded, I could
see how it looked and make adjustments before I saved it for publishing. It took a few times, but it was finally
uploaded as I wanted it. Next, I
uploaded to Barnes and Noble for Nook.
And just like that, I was published.
It didn’t end
there. Some people wanted a hard copy, a
book they could hold in their hands. I
am not an illustrator so I found a website, Dreamstime.com, and there I found
photographs that I could pay very little for the right to use on a book
cover. I hunted through them until I
found the perfect one for each book. I
searched the internet until I found a reasonably priced, good printer, DiggyPOD,
in Michigan who would print as many books as I wanted at a time.
Before I ordered
any printed books, I went to Facebook and to my email and asked my friends if
they’d buy a book if I printed some. I
received enough monies to pay for the first printing. They kept their word, and they also loved the
books.
Tuesday,
September 4, I had my first books signing right here in Brainerd, Minnesota, at
the Franklin Arts Center. It was thrilling to watch as people bought my book. I also was featured in the Brainerd Dispatch’s magazine, HerVoice, 2012 fall issue.
A good friend once told me, “Everyone
wants to be a writer, but no one wants to do the work.” He should know because he teaches college
writing. I can tell you from experience that those
words are true. None of it was easy, but
it was worthwhile. It took jumping in
head first and a lot of guts, but I am happy where I am today as a writer. I
just told my husband that I am beginning to feel like an author.
Please visit my
website www.bonnierokketinnes.com. There you will learn more about my writing
and me and also how to get in touch with me.
I would love that.
--Bonnie Rokke Tinnes
When was the last time you backed up your WIP?
Many people believe that there is no need to back up their
work somewhere other than their computer. I was one of them.
Having used computers since the 1980s with no problems, in
2012 my newest computer decides it doesn’t want to boot properly, hence no access
to a list of passwords and sites, not to mention my WIP that I will have to
begin anew because there is no money to take the computer in and find out what
is wrong and retrieve a CD stuck in the drive that is the set up disk for my
new printer.
Miffed would be an understatement about this. Thank goodness
there was an older computer that was able to be connected and allow internet
access, except for rebuilding the password and site list from scratch. I still
have trouble with a blogger account that Google hasn’t given me a password
reset link yet.
Be forewarned, anyone working on a computer needs to save
their work to somewhere other than the hard drive. I will not recommend any
place, but there are numerous site online, or use a flash drive. Wish I would
have.
Having information on something other than the computer
itself will same time and some hair pulling if the hard drive crashes or
something that makes the computer inoperable for some reason.
I would also like to recommend creating a backup copy of
your files onto some type of medium so that you have ready access to those
files should the need arise. Wish I did.
Robert Medak
Freelance Writer/Blogger/Editor/Reviewer/Marketer
What is Good for the Goose........
I often write posts for parents to include tips on how to keep their child interested in school or how to improve their performance and keep them healthy. It has recently occurred to me as I popped another Motrin and sit at my computer with blurry eyes and a stiff neck that what is good for the goose might just be good for the gander, meaning me, myself, and I.
As a writer and full time nurse, wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, friend, volunteer, aunt, and did I say grandmother ..... that my own writing performance might be improved by my own advice. The typical tips I offer parents are summed up in three points:
When I am in the writing zone I may often just grab a few chips and a soda so I can keep at it. Would I not be more productive if I ate three times a day and had a fruit for a snack? It would get me moving so the muscle stiffness would improve and I can't believe that I might not actually have more energy.
And how about that sleep thingie? Working full time leaves me with many late hour nights to catch up on the writing. It is a five hour night of sleep more often than not. I am finding that working more hours with less sleep is not helping my productivity as much as one might think. Instead, I am rushing through some of the emails, social sites, or marketing items and calling it a night without finishing any productive writing because my mind is too tired to do anything more than flip through to see what others are doing and making a comment or two.
And the advice on over scheduling is a fact. If I am too busy with too many things, I truly don't do any of them well nor do I feel productive. If I am honest and look at my three major writing goals for the year many of the activities that I do online and otherwise may not be in my own best interest as a writer. Some of the social activities certainly don't always move my writing forward and that can be said for some of the volunteer jobs I do as well.
My new advice then must include these three things if I am to finish the year meeting some of my goals.
How about your writing goals for the rest of 2012? Are you following the advice you give to your students or your clients? Is your time being well spent on your writing goals or do you need to reconsider what is good for the goose?
Terri Forehand writes from her home in Nashville Indiana in the hills of Brown County. She is the author of a prayer book for those with cancer and a soon to be released picture book for kids with cancer. She does book reviews for kids and adults, and does a variety of editing tasks for several online sites. Visit her at http://www.terriforehand.webnode.com or http://terri-forehand.blogspot.com
As a writer and full time nurse, wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, friend, volunteer, aunt, and did I say grandmother ..... that my own writing performance might be improved by my own advice. The typical tips I offer parents are summed up in three points:
- Eat a healthy balanced diet
- Get enough sleep
- Don't over-schedule your child... allow your child to be a child.
When I am in the writing zone I may often just grab a few chips and a soda so I can keep at it. Would I not be more productive if I ate three times a day and had a fruit for a snack? It would get me moving so the muscle stiffness would improve and I can't believe that I might not actually have more energy.
And how about that sleep thingie? Working full time leaves me with many late hour nights to catch up on the writing. It is a five hour night of sleep more often than not. I am finding that working more hours with less sleep is not helping my productivity as much as one might think. Instead, I am rushing through some of the emails, social sites, or marketing items and calling it a night without finishing any productive writing because my mind is too tired to do anything more than flip through to see what others are doing and making a comment or two.
And the advice on over scheduling is a fact. If I am too busy with too many things, I truly don't do any of them well nor do I feel productive. If I am honest and look at my three major writing goals for the year many of the activities that I do online and otherwise may not be in my own best interest as a writer. Some of the social activities certainly don't always move my writing forward and that can be said for some of the volunteer jobs I do as well.
My new advice then must include these three things if I am to finish the year meeting some of my goals.
- Eat and exercise for overall health
- Get more sleep by doing less social media and marketing. After all if I never get those projects done there really is nothing to promote.
- Avoid overschuling, especially with the holiday season approaching. Less committments will hopefully leave me open to do more solid writing. More solid writing means more production and maybe a finished product to promote by the end of the year.
How about your writing goals for the rest of 2012? Are you following the advice you give to your students or your clients? Is your time being well spent on your writing goals or do you need to reconsider what is good for the goose?
Terri Forehand writes from her home in Nashville Indiana in the hills of Brown County. She is the author of a prayer book for those with cancer and a soon to be released picture book for kids with cancer. She does book reviews for kids and adults, and does a variety of editing tasks for several online sites. Visit her at http://www.terriforehand.webnode.com or http://terri-forehand.blogspot.com
A Little "Sniff"
Today I’m having a “sniff” day. No, I do not have a cold or
allergies. What I have is a desire to smell my way around and see what can be
added to scenes.
Taking a day to focus on each of the senses creates a
different way of viewing the world around us and then also gives us new insight
into what we can put on the page.
A day focused on visuals might showcase the subtle changes
that light makes as the sun sweeps across the sky. A day focused on sound might
bring into focus the bantering of birds, or the swishing of branches in the
light breeze. Of course, a day full of taste is a favorite day of the week.
Already my mouth waters, as I decide what amazing meal to share. Perhaps the
swordfish I had last week served over blueberries. A day of touch might find me
wandering the backyard running my fingers over roses or just as likely fabric
shopping.
But today is “sniff” so my nose is called to action. And
away I go. I’ve pulled a book from my shelf. It has sat there for more than a
year untouched and has the musty smell that reminds me of used bookstores. It
is a scent that takes me immediately to an old overstuff chair that sat in the
afternoon sun of my public library as a child. Even though it is “sniff” day, I
can still see the dust motes that flew around me when I sat down. My dog rubs
against me for some one-on-one time. I breathe deeply into her coat. Grass -
that fresh scent that reminds me of days log rolling down hills. Her feet
though, remind me of sweaty boy socks and that bath time might have to occur
soon. It’s birthday week for my grandson, so I had was allowed to bake a
chocolate cake. The smell of vanilla followed me around the rest of the
afternoon and always lifts my spirits. Finally, I drew a warm bath and added
lavender. What a great way to end a lovely “sniff” day.
What will you “sniff” today?
______________________
D. Jean Quarles is a writer of Women's Fiction and Young Adult Science Fiction. Her latest book, Flight from the Water Planet, Book 1 of The Exodus Series was written with her coauthor, Austine Etcheverry.
D. Jean loves to tell stories of personal growth – where success has nothing to do with money or fame, but of living life to the fullest. She is also the author of the novels: Rocky's Mountains, Fire in the Hole and, Perception. The Mermaid, an award winning short story was published in the anthology, Tales from a Sweltering City.
She is a wife, mother, grandmother and business coach. In her free time . . . ha! ha! ha! Anyway, you can find more about D. Jean Quarles, her writing and her books at her website at www.djeanquarles.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
What are Project Mood Boards and Why Do You Need One?
by Suzanne Lieurance When submitting your manuscripts for possible publication these days, you’ll probably find that many agents and editors...
-
Contributed by Margot Conor I started looking for alternative platforms for my creative writing process. Moving all my projects is a dau... -
by Suzanne Lieurance Many new freelance writers are confused or intimated by sidebars. But that’s usually because they just don’t understa... -
Contributed by Karen Cioffi You may be an author or writer who takes the time to comment on other websites. This is an effective online mark...