tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32085591.post115945718960378098..comments2023-11-07T21:12:19.852-06:00Comments on Wyrdsmiths: Accurate vs. Effective Dialoguetate hallawayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06631759014508937940noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32085591.post-1159721350723183852006-10-01T11:49:00.000-05:002006-10-01T11:49:00.000-05:00What I'm trying to write is believable fiction, NO...<I>What I'm trying to write is believable fiction, NOT reality.</I> I second that!!~ Marihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11791869629938128432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32085591.post-1159628584961148962006-09-30T10:03:00.000-05:002006-09-30T10:03:00.000-05:00I've used dialect, but only for minor characters a...I've used dialect, but only for minor characters and I try to cue it strongly at the front end and then trail it off, so that the readers gets a solid impression up front for that character's speech and then when they read the character later they supply much of that flavor themselves. I'm fimrly on the effective side of the fence. What I'm trying to write is believable fiction, NOT reality.Kelly McCulloughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06399122960869198042noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32085591.post-1159581732401246572006-09-29T21:02:00.000-05:002006-09-29T21:02:00.000-05:00Dialect is hard. My editor suggested I might use ...Dialect is hard. My editor suggested I might use it for some of the minor characters in my book, and I vetoed it as too much work too late in the process.<BR/><BR/>In terms of realistic dialogue, it's all right, but I tend to use theatrical realism: if this character were on stage, how would they speak? The answer is, like a normal person but more shorter, clearer and more to the point. As you said, effective, not accurate.<BR/><BR/>Charles Dickens (on whom I have a very, very tenuous claim as a relative) wrote about dialect something along the lines of a person should be allowed to sound as they are, so long as are not vulgar.<BR/><BR/>It's not a bad way to go, as long as you have a good ear for listening to accents and a better pen for writing them down.Erik Buchananhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11117613593580899672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32085591.post-1159466487078744782006-09-28T13:01:00.000-05:002006-09-28T13:01:00.000-05:00This is also why I personally deplore the use of d...<I>This is also why I personally deplore the use of dialect.</I><BR/><BR/>When I first started working on <I>Midnight</I>, I toyed with the idea of writing dialect. I tossed it out, though; it got in the way of the story. Besides, the way things sound is difficult to get across on paper - especially when the area I write about has a variety of dialects. Matter of fact, my husband and I were discussing those dialects the other day. It's possible to tell <I>where</I> a person is from within Harlan County by just listening to him speak.<BR/><BR/><I>Be bold. Be clear.</I><BR/><BR/>I can stand by that.~ Marihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11791869629938128432noreply@blogger.com