Pay Attention To Punctuation

👇       👇      👇

The Basics of Dialogue Punctuation

1. Dialogue tags are NEVER capitalized, even if they follow a question mark or an exclamation point.

Example:

"Please, pass me the butter," he said. (there should always be a comma inside the quotation marks, not a period )

"Are you coming to the movies?" she asked.

"Close the door!" he shouted.

2. Action tags are ALWAYS capitalized.

Example: 

"Please pass me the butter." He reached across the table when I didn't react. (there should never be a comma inside the quotation marks)

"Are you coming to the movies?" She gave him a hopeful smile.

"Close the door!" The man huffed when the boy ignored him.

📌 NOTE: Dialogue punctuation should always be inside the quotation marks.

3. Punctuation can have a big effect on how readers 'hear' a sentence in their head – something that's particularly important when reading dialogue. Certain punctuation can add a layer of realism to character dialogue, representing the natural pauses and emphasis found in real-life speech and giving the reader a clue about how the character might be feeling.

Em dashes are one example of punctuation that can work well throughout dialogue. People are always interrupting each other (and themselves) when they speak. A dash is perfect for indicating this.

Example:

"But I just—"

"Save your excuses for someone else. We are done here."

Similarly, ellipses can be helpful when a character's train of thought trails off, or when there's a long pause from the speaker.

Example:

"I just don't know what I should do about this." Claire sighed when Robert stayed quiet. "What do you think?"

"Well. . ." Robert scratched his head. How should he tell her that she screwed up?

📌 NOTE: Along with punctuation, formatting is an important feature of well-written dialogue. Always follow universal rules, such as giving each speaker a new line.

📌 PRO TIP: You may find it helpful to write out a dialogue exchange roughly and freely at first, speaking the lines out loud how you imagine your characters saying them. Then go back to punctuate and format properly.