A tip a day to keep the rejections away
Let’s call this a marathon…of words. I’m going to post one writing tip a day to
help you become a better writer. Some of
them you may already know. It all
depends on how far along you are as a writer.
What are my qualifications?
For several years, I’ve written the monthly Pet Vet column for the Post
Bulletin newspaper. I’ve had
articles published in RunMinnesota, DVM360 journal, and The Wagazine. I’m in a
wonderful critique group that meets weekly to tell me everything I’ve done
wrong.
Save yourself some time by learning from my mistakes.
Abbreviations are as follows:
MS = manuscript
CP = critique partner
WIP = work in progress
MILE TWO = DIALOGUE TAGS
I’ve got three rules to discuss concerning dialogue
tags. This is based on reading, editing,
and deep meditation on the subject.
First—it’s all about LOCATION,
LOCATION, LOCATION.
Don’t wait until the very end of a long paragraph of
dialogue to tell me who is speaking.
Don’t make me (the reader) wonder, wait, or skip ahead to find out. Put the dialogue tag right at the very first
logical break (where you would insert a comma or a period).
For example:
“I love the way your hair blows in the wind, the way your
eyes sparkle in the moonlight, the way your perfume does an excellent job of
covering up the smell of your farts. We never
should’ve had beans for dinner, but I love you anyway,” crooned Fabio.
Now you know why I don’t write romance novels.
Here’s the revision:
“I love the way your hair blows in the wind,” crooned Fabio, “the way your eyes sparkle in the
moonlight…”
Second dialogue reminder:
GIVE ME A DIALOGUE TAG OR A PHYSICAL CUE, BUT
DON’T BOTHER ME WITH BOTH
Another classy example:
“Supper was awesome,” Ernie said as
he burped.
And the suggested revision:
“Supper was awesome.”
Ernie burped.
The next rule is simple, yet complicated: THE KEY TO DIALOGUE
TAGS IS NOT TOO MANY…AND NOT TOO FEW.
Add enough that the reader always knows who is talking, but
not so many that it slows the flow. But
I can’t give you a proper example for this. Good critique partners (CPs) will point this
out to you.
That’s it—your quickie tip for the day!
See you tomorrow for Mile 3!
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