Creative Writing – Technical Tips

Punctuation in Dialogue

Use a comma to introduce dialogue.

• Example: He said, “ I have two dogs.”

Add punctuation of the dialogue in the quotations.

• Example: “What movie should we watch?” she asked.

Use a comma when there is a tag or responsive action following the dialogue.

• Example: “I can’t go tonight,” he sighed.

Note: If dialogue relies question mark or exclamation point, do not add an additional comma after your closing quotes.

• Example 1: “Are you going to dinner with us?” she asked.

• Example 2: “I love you!” he said.

If dialogue is separated by a tag or responsive action, use commas to note the end of the first part of the dialogue within the closing quotation, and begin the secondary dialogue clause with a comma before the opening quotation.

• Example: “I need to make dinner,” he said, “but I have to go grocery shopping first.”

Indicate different speakers by using paragraph breaks. The following is an example from The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller.

• Example:「“I’m sorry,” Achilles said.

  “Leave me,” the old king whispered. We obeyed.」

Punctuating Titles

Use italics to for titles or names of specific works, such as books, films, TV shows, podcasts, magazines, albums, and other long-form works.

• Example: The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann (Novel)

• Example: Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend (Podcast)

Use quotations to indicate individual chapters, articles, song titles, or episodes.

• Example: The first song on David Bowie’s album Lodger is “Fantastic Voyage”

• Example: Season 1, Episode 5 of Dexter is “Love American Style”

Italics

Use italics to show emphasis, or note internal monologue or implied dialogue.

• Example: “That was supposed to be my drink.”

Note: Don’t bold your text or use all-caps to emphasize text.

Parentheses versus Em Dash

• Use an em dash to indicate a longer pause than a comma would indicate.
  • Consider an em dash a ½ note pause, where a comma would be a ¼ note pause.
• Avoid parenthesis where possible, as they indicate non-critical text and readers are likely to pass over it.
  • Instead, consider using em dashes to set aside non-critical text or a “side-note” that stays within the body of the text.

Note: Screen readers may read em dashes as “dash dash”, so be cognizant of this as it may cause disruption to flow and impede readability.

Food for Thought

• Ask yourself, are you showing or telling?
  • If you are telling the reader information that can be shown through sentence structure adjustments, punctuation, or other tools, consider rephrasing to improve the flow, comprehension, and impact of your story.
• Always maintain a consistent tense!