Italics and Internal Monologue can be very confusing. I write in Deep POV, so for those who employ this technique, here are some hints that might help. If you’re writing in Deep POV, which many authors are today, remember that you’re in a character’s pov, so anything they think, feel, see or hear filters through their head and directly onto the page. Thus, if it doesn’t have quotation marks around it, it is internal and should not be in italics. The only time you need italics is when the character is remembering another voice in their head, or they are unable to voice the words they are speaking. For example if a person is remembering something their mother, their pastor, their friend, or even something they read, it is another […]
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Conversations: Adding Punch to your dialogue by creating Meaningful Action
“You look upset,” Sally said as she sat down on the deck. She wore a white shirt, her hair pulled back in a sixties’ style headband and a sleek summer tan. I sighed, stirring my frappucino. “I just had a difficult conversation with my son about his driving skills.” “Did you argue?” “No. And that’s the problem. He said everything right. It’s what he didn’t say that bothered me.” She frowned. “We were driving into town. He was riding beside me, his elbow out the window, when I broached the topic. I mentioned that we’d seen him driving in town recently a little too recklessly, and if he wanted to drive our cars he’d have to slow down.” “And?” “He said, ‘Sure, Mom. Whatever.’” “That doesn’t sound–” “He was scrolling […]
Read the RestConversations: Subtexting and the flow of Dialogue
“My husband is driving me crazy.” Sally sat down on the Adirondack chair facing the morning sun, lifted her face to it, closed her eyes. “I just want to sit here and not talk.” I raised an eyebrow. “Did you have a nice visit to your mother-in-law’s house this weekend?” She opened an eye. “My husband and I rode home in two-and-a-half hours of stone silence.” “Ah,” I said. “Silence that speaks a thousand words. A form of dialogue in itself, which is what I wanted to talk to you about today.” “How is silence a form of dialogue?” “I’m certain you communicated, even if you didn’t use words, right?” She made a face. I laughed. “Great dialogue raises conflict and contains subtexting about the deeper issues of the story.” […]
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Conversations: Putting Point of View into your Storyworld
Sally tossed her notebook on the table. “You’re tan. How fair is that? I’m still pasty white.” I gave her a smile. “I’m still white as a walleye compared to the Hawaiians, not to mention the native Hawaiians.. How is your storyworld writing going?” “It feels like a travel brochure. I don’t know how to make it interesting.” “It’s all about perspective, which is what I wanted to talk to you today. Every book, regardless of what kind – Suspense/Romance, Fantasy, Thriller, Historical romance – every book starts out someplace. In a world. At a moment. And, in today’s literature, with a person. Whether it’s a firecracker start to a book, or something that begins with a wide-angle view, drawing into the scene, it is viewed through the eyes of […]
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