180 / Types of Writing
-^ Check paragraphing. You may include description relating to the character
or the situation in the same paragraph, but you must begin a new paragraph
when another character begins speaking. [See Chapter 37, Scripts, for writing
description relating to characters or situations in plays or television scripts.]
-^ Check quotation marks. Have you enclosed the speaker’s words, but not his
thoughts, in quotation marks? If the speaker’s words run more than one
paragraph, have you started each new paragraph with quotation marks but
ended only the last paragraph with them?
-^ Are commas, question marks, and exclamation marks used in correct
relationship with the quotation marks? Study the following two rules and
their respective examples:
- Always put commas inside quotation marks.
Example: “Never open an e-mail attachment unless you’re certain of its
contents,” my brother warned.
(The comma belongs inside the quotation marks.) - Put question marks and exclamation marks inside quotation marks if the
quotation is a question or exclamation. Put question marks and exclamation
marks outside quotation marks if the complete sentence is a question or
exclamation.
Examples: “Why are you standing in the rain?” Marty asked.
(The quoted words form a question; thus the question mark goes inside
the quotation marks.)
Did Kirsten say, “I love standing in the rain”?
(The quoted words do not form a question; rather, the complete sentence
is a question. Thus, the question mark goes outside the quotation marks.) - Are^ apostrophes^ used^ to^ show^ omission^ of^ letters^ or^ dropped^ endings?
-^ Are spellings appropriate for the dialogue, words in some cases spelled to
indicate pronunciation?
-^ Do capital letters begin not only your sentences but also the sentences of the
speakers?
-^ Are any grammar or usage errors within the dialogue intentional, designed to
characterize the speaker? - Are^ narrative^ and^ descriptive^ sections^ free^ from^ grammar^ or^ usage^ errors?
If you use the process indicated in these steps and proofread carefully, you should be
able to develop a satisfactory dialogue.