Let's Talk Dialogue Part 2
Thoughts on characters speaking in dialect, with an accent, or in another language, and thoughts on diction.
Hey Story Crafters,
I’m going to dig a little deeper into dialogue with my thoughts on characters speaking in dialect, with an accent, or in another language, and diction. You may or may not agree with my thoughts. Even if you don’t, I hope they let you consider the perspective of readers who may not enjoy how you use these dialogue elements in your writing.
On characters speaking in dialect, with an accent, or in another language:
I’m going to be honest about this right off the bat: I’m not a fan of reading characters who speak in dialect. I don’t have the patience, as a reader, to try figuring out what a character who speaks in dialect is trying to say (here’s looking at you, Mark Twain—specifically Jim from “Huck Finn.”). The same is true for me as an editor; which is unfortunate, because dialogue is one of my favorite parts to edit in a story.
Note: This is a personal preference of mine as a reader and an editor, and it’s in no way an attempt to discourage anyone from writing in dialect. That’s a choice you, as an author, get to make. I’m also not saying that books with characters that do speak in dialect are better or worse than books with characters that don’t speak in dialect. What I am saying is that, if you have a manuscript with characters speaking in dialect, I’m probably not the best editor for your manuscript.
(Confession time: I sometimes get too excited about line editing dialogue, if I really like a character. Depending on the author I’m working with, I have to limit myself to offering 1-2 of the best alternative dialogue lines I come up with, if I think a line of dialogue can be phrased differently.)
I’m a strong believer of dialogue serving multiple functions. That it can, and should, convey information to the reader, develop character and relationships, and move the story forward. If the reader has to spend time figuring out what a character is trying to say, they’re not spending that time learning more about the character(s) or the story. The reader might become impatient, frustrated, and decide not to read further. And that’s the last thing you want to happen.
This is, of course, my opinion on the matter. Other editors, readers, and writers will have their own opinions in support of or against writing in dialect. There are alternatives to having characters speak in dialect, with an accent, or in another language, below:
Choose specific words that indicate a character is speaking in dialect or with an accent.
Mention a character is speaking in dialect or with an accent in the dialogue tags.
If a character is speaking in another language, combine 1) and 2).
As for characters speaking in another language, it’s up to you to decide whether a character should speak entirely in another language, write the dialogue in English with a dialogue tag saying the character is speaking in another language, or a combination of both. You might make this decision based on your audience (if you think they’ll have the patience to read dialogue in another language, and refer to a glossary), your vision for your story, or your personal style.
It’s also important to keep context in mind. You can have a character speak in another language and not need to translate it directly through another character’s POV, or by having the reader rely on a glossary (or other resources). Instead, if other characters understand what Character A (who speaks in another language) is saying, how those characters respond or react to whatever Character A said provides context the reader can use to interpret Character A’s dialogue. Again, this may be a technique to use sparingly, depending on how patient you think a reader might be—in which case, the character who speaks in another language should probably not be the main character of the story.
On diction (specifically for external dialogue):
The words characters choose to use (their vocabulary), and how they choose to speak (speech pattern) tells a lot about a specific character. As I said in the post last week, no two characters sound (or should sound) alike. Let’s put this idea into play with an example scenario below.
Say you have two characters: Character A is the straight-laced, professional type, and Character B prefers speaking more casually. They wouldn’t use the same words or phrasing when they speak, so their dialogue won’t sound the same. How Character A decides to phrase a question should sound different from the way Character B would say that same question.
Here are a few examples of how Characters A and B might respond when placed in similar situations.
Additionally, depending on the context, these characters may change how they speak. For example, maybe Character A starts using casual language when upset, while Character B starts speaking more formally.
As for internal dialogue, the way characters sound (their “speech” pattern [or thought pattern, in this case]; how sentences are structured) should follow the same idea as external dialogue. However, word choice, like using “going” vs. “gonna,” for example, is more of a stylistic choice.
I’ll be sharing a few more thoughts on dialogue next week. Until then, happy writing!
Best,
Leah