Writing Tips

Punctuating Dialogue

✧

➸ “This is a sentence.”

➸ “This is a sentence with a dialogue tag at the end,” she said.

➸ “This,” he said, “is a sentence split by a dialogue tag.”

➸ “This is a sentence,” she said. “This is a new sentence. New sentences are capitalized.”

➸ “This is a sentence followed by an action.” He stood. “They are separate sentences because he did not speak by standing.”

➸ She said, “Use a comma to introduce dialogue. The quote is capitalized when the dialogue tag is at the beginning.”

➸ “Use a comma when a dialogue tag follows a quote,” he said.

“Unless there is a question mark?” she asked.

“Or an exclamation point!” he answered. “The dialogue tag still remains uncapitalized because it’s not truly the end of the sentence.”

➸ “Periods and commas should be inside closing quotations.”

➸ “Hey!” she shouted, “Sometimes exclamation points are inside quotations.”

However, if it’s not dialogue exclamation points can also be “outside”!

➸ “Does this apply to question marks too?” he asked.

If it’s not dialogue, can question marks be “outside”? (Yes, they can.)

➸ “This applies to dashes too. Inside quotations dashes typically express—“

“Interruption” — but there are situations dashes may be outside.

➸ “You’ll notice that exclamation marks, question marks, and dashes do not have a comma after them. Ellipses don’t have a comma after them either…” she said.

➸ “My teacher said, ‘Use single quotation marks when quoting within dialogue.’”

➸ “Use paragraph breaks to indicate a new speaker,” he said.

“The readers will know it’s someone else speaking.”

➸ “If it’s the same speaker but different paragraph, keep the closing quotation off.

“This shows it’s the same character continuing to speak.”

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writing writing tips

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1 month ago

why's it so hard to find polyamorous fluff but so easy to find monogamous fluff? what i'm saying is why does every poly ship fic have smut? you can probably tell what im implying

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<prev tags fetishizing of poly perhaps idk this is so so frustrating!! polyamory is not just for hot kinky sex

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mybelovedmoon

3 months ago

i think it would be sirius' personal mission to make remus look less like one strong gust of wind could finish him off. which means sirius always made a point of sitting next to remus during meals in the great hall. remus would often pick at his food because his appetite was ruined by the toll of his monthly transformations. sirius would pile remus’s plate high with everything he thought the boy needed—roast chicken, mashed potatoes, treacle tart, you name it, it's on remus' plate, and then threaten (affectionately) to feed him himself if he didn't start getting on with it. james would 100% back him at this endeavour as a certifiably insane mother hen ♡

sirius: we NEED to put some meat on all those bones! i can almost see through you!

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mybelovedmoon

4 months ago

hiiii there! i'm curious if u have a fave fancast for remus :)

sure! narrowed it down to two <33

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<prev tags he's shaking in my hand rn im abt to place him v gently into his shoebox n feed bits of bread cheese n also a tiny vitamin my window and curl up inside a v soft sock n he'll yawn v quietly n he'll b soso happy cos wow look at how nice this is n when i come home he'll be soso glad to see me cos after i make dinner n do the chores n check off my to-do list i'll sit w him n plot his divorce. he'll shake his head like 'urm u r crazy for that i'm so small n the world is so big n u want me to suffer.' n i'll pat his head n assure him that it won't be him who's gettin divorced just a version of him. n he'll sigh cos phewww he doesnt acc know wht divorce is and i havent taught him how to google yet as he has a v busy schedule n i'd hate to bother him. anyway. yeah sry i don't rly vibe w fancasts lol x mhm yes perfect

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mybelovedmoon

1 month ago

the problem with reading and writing leading to a strong vocabulary is that you tend to know the vibe of words instead of their meanings.

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mybelovedmoon

1 week ago

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so true

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1 month ago

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mybelovedmoon

5 months ago

chapter 3 of Becoming Remus this Christmas is here!!

Remus accompanies Sirius to a party; mistletoe is involved.

archiveofourown.org

Becoming Remus this Christmas - Chapter 3 - mybelovedmoon - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling [Archive of Our Own]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

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wolfstar remus lupin wolfstar fic trans remus lupin wolfstar fanfiction disabled remus lupin fic: becoming remus this christmas

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mybelovedmoon