Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue if the action is being taken by a new person?












10















I am currently editing an original work of fiction, and one of the things I'm having the most trouble with is dialogue and paragraphs after certain character's actions. I know it sounds a little confusing, but I'll try my best to explain.



In this example paragraph, there are three characters: Nat (the narrator), Oddie, and Arden.





Would it be written:




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?”



He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my
arms in the air, exasperated.




or,




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing
the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air,
exasperated.






Basically, I'm wondering if I should start a new paragraph after the dialogue if the action is being taken by a person other than the one who just finished talking.



I know it sounds a bit confusing. I'm very sorry if I don't explain myself well. Still, I hope someone will be able to help me, as I'm having some trouble with this. The second option seems right to me, but in writing it like that, I'm afraid the reader might get confused about who's doing what.



Any help will be greatly appreciated!










share|improve this question















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  • Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

    – Adam Miller
    yesterday











  • Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

    – Mazura
    18 hours ago


















10















I am currently editing an original work of fiction, and one of the things I'm having the most trouble with is dialogue and paragraphs after certain character's actions. I know it sounds a little confusing, but I'll try my best to explain.



In this example paragraph, there are three characters: Nat (the narrator), Oddie, and Arden.





Would it be written:




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?”



He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my
arms in the air, exasperated.




or,




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing
the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air,
exasperated.






Basically, I'm wondering if I should start a new paragraph after the dialogue if the action is being taken by a person other than the one who just finished talking.



I know it sounds a bit confusing. I'm very sorry if I don't explain myself well. Still, I hope someone will be able to help me, as I'm having some trouble with this. The second option seems right to me, but in writing it like that, I'm afraid the reader might get confused about who's doing what.



Any help will be greatly appreciated!










share|improve this question















migrated from english.stackexchange.com 2 days ago


This question came from our site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts.
















  • Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

    – Adam Miller
    yesterday











  • Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

    – Mazura
    18 hours ago
















10












10








10


2






I am currently editing an original work of fiction, and one of the things I'm having the most trouble with is dialogue and paragraphs after certain character's actions. I know it sounds a little confusing, but I'll try my best to explain.



In this example paragraph, there are three characters: Nat (the narrator), Oddie, and Arden.





Would it be written:




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?”



He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my
arms in the air, exasperated.




or,




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing
the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air,
exasperated.






Basically, I'm wondering if I should start a new paragraph after the dialogue if the action is being taken by a person other than the one who just finished talking.



I know it sounds a bit confusing. I'm very sorry if I don't explain myself well. Still, I hope someone will be able to help me, as I'm having some trouble with this. The second option seems right to me, but in writing it like that, I'm afraid the reader might get confused about who's doing what.



Any help will be greatly appreciated!










share|improve this question
















I am currently editing an original work of fiction, and one of the things I'm having the most trouble with is dialogue and paragraphs after certain character's actions. I know it sounds a little confusing, but I'll try my best to explain.



In this example paragraph, there are three characters: Nat (the narrator), Oddie, and Arden.





Would it be written:




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?”



He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my
arms in the air, exasperated.




or,




“We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



“I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing
the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air,
exasperated.






Basically, I'm wondering if I should start a new paragraph after the dialogue if the action is being taken by a person other than the one who just finished talking.



I know it sounds a bit confusing. I'm very sorry if I don't explain myself well. Still, I hope someone will be able to help me, as I'm having some trouble with this. The second option seems right to me, but in writing it like that, I'm afraid the reader might get confused about who's doing what.



Any help will be greatly appreciated!







dialogue formatting grammar






share|improve this question















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share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited 2 days ago









Cyn

5,882738




5,882738










asked 2 days ago







Naomi











migrated from english.stackexchange.com 2 days ago


This question came from our site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts.






migrated from english.stackexchange.com 2 days ago


This question came from our site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts.















  • Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

    – Adam Miller
    yesterday











  • Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

    – Mazura
    18 hours ago





















  • Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

    – Adam Miller
    yesterday











  • Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

    – Mazura
    18 hours ago



















Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

– Adam Miller
yesterday





Based on the answer by @Sara Costa , I think I'm not alone in being slightly confused as to who said “I thought you said that name was already taken?”. Could you clarify that in your question?

– Adam Miller
yesterday













Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

– Mazura
18 hours ago







Does dialogue by definition have to be in quotation marks? I'd say if it doesn't, then not necessarily - if it isn't. Should I start a new paragraph after a dialogue, in quotes, if the action is being taken by a new person? Absolutely.

– Mazura
18 hours ago












5 Answers
5






active

oldest

votes


















19














I would say it is definitely a new paragraph if only to indicate 'he' didn't say 'I thought ...'.



I teach that you start a new paragraph when you change speaker, place, time or character. Here the change is character.






share|improve this answer































    13














    First of all, I'll admit I had some trouble identifying who said




    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”




    I'm assuming that Oddie said it in reaction to Arden's suggestion and that Nat, the narrator, got exasperated when Arden shrugged. Please let me know if I got it wrong.





    Option 2




    “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



    “I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




    This makes it look as if the speaker shrugs while saying the line.





    Option 1




    “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



    He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




    This does not give the impression the speaker of the line and the person who shrugs are the same.





    Note:

    If you feel the reader might get confused about who is saying what, use the character's name or an attribute that clearly identifies the character.




    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



    Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.




    Imagine that Arden's cloak is blue while Oddie's brown.




    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



    He shrugged, toeing the remnants of his blue cloak over his lap.







    share|improve this answer































      11














      Yes. Not only should you start a new paragraph for every character, but you need to be clear about who is saying or doing what.



      You mention the excerpt involves 3 characters. We know the first person part is Nat, the narrator. And of course the parts you label as being from Arden are from that character. But where is Oddie? Is he the speaker in the middle? If so, try this:




      “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
      hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



      Oddie looks up. “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



      Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.



      I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.







      share|improve this answer































        3














        It's considered normal to start a new paragraph when somebody new speaks; however, it's not essential. I've read more than a few books where dialogue from two people happens in the same paragraph. When done correctly, it can be done without any confusion.



        The main point, however, is that it needs to be made clear who's speaking.



        Switching to a new paragraph is a stylistic way of indicating that the speaker has changed. But just switching paragraphs may not be enough. For example, there could be more than two characters. Switching to a new paragraph will likely not be sufficient to indicate that the conversation has switched out of an alternating discourse between two people and it's now a third or fourth character interjecting themselves into the dialogue.



        What can also be disconcerting is when the same character is speaking in a new paragraph. This is normally indicated with the lack of a closing quotation mark at the end of the previous paragraph. Nonetheless, that may not be easily spotted—and if it's missed, it can cause confusion.





        Whether it's different people in the same paragraph, different people in alternating paragraphs, or the same person in multiple paragraphs, narrative markers can be very helpful. If it's not clear (no matter what the format), break the speech to identify the speaker in some way.





        Incidentally, regardless of the paragraph breaks, it's not clear who is speaking the second line of dialogue in the passage you've provided.



        It's likely Oddie—but it could also be Nat. (It could even have been Arden, continuing on from the previous paragraph, if different words had been spoken.)



        Unless the speaker is clear when viewing the passage from its larger context, I would say you should give some kind of explicit indication of who that second line of dialogue is coming from.






        share|improve this answer

































          0














          I've seen both forms used, but in the first one it feels like he says it, and then he shrugs. While in the second one it feels like he is saying it as he is shrugging. Hope that helped <3






          share|improve this answer























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            5 Answers
            5






            active

            oldest

            votes








            5 Answers
            5






            active

            oldest

            votes









            active

            oldest

            votes






            active

            oldest

            votes









            19














            I would say it is definitely a new paragraph if only to indicate 'he' didn't say 'I thought ...'.



            I teach that you start a new paragraph when you change speaker, place, time or character. Here the change is character.






            share|improve this answer




























              19














              I would say it is definitely a new paragraph if only to indicate 'he' didn't say 'I thought ...'.



              I teach that you start a new paragraph when you change speaker, place, time or character. Here the change is character.






              share|improve this answer


























                19












                19








                19







                I would say it is definitely a new paragraph if only to indicate 'he' didn't say 'I thought ...'.



                I teach that you start a new paragraph when you change speaker, place, time or character. Here the change is character.






                share|improve this answer













                I would say it is definitely a new paragraph if only to indicate 'he' didn't say 'I thought ...'.



                I teach that you start a new paragraph when you change speaker, place, time or character. Here the change is character.







                share|improve this answer












                share|improve this answer



                share|improve this answer










                answered 2 days ago









                S. MitchellS. Mitchell

                4,0731622




                4,0731622























                    13














                    First of all, I'll admit I had some trouble identifying who said




                    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”




                    I'm assuming that Oddie said it in reaction to Arden's suggestion and that Nat, the narrator, got exasperated when Arden shrugged. Please let me know if I got it wrong.





                    Option 2




                    “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                    “I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                    This makes it look as if the speaker shrugs while saying the line.





                    Option 1




                    “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                    He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                    This does not give the impression the speaker of the line and the person who shrugs are the same.





                    Note:

                    If you feel the reader might get confused about who is saying what, use the character's name or an attribute that clearly identifies the character.




                    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                    Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.




                    Imagine that Arden's cloak is blue while Oddie's brown.




                    “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                    He shrugged, toeing the remnants of his blue cloak over his lap.







                    share|improve this answer




























                      13














                      First of all, I'll admit I had some trouble identifying who said




                      “I thought you said that name was already taken?”




                      I'm assuming that Oddie said it in reaction to Arden's suggestion and that Nat, the narrator, got exasperated when Arden shrugged. Please let me know if I got it wrong.





                      Option 2




                      “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                      “I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                      This makes it look as if the speaker shrugs while saying the line.





                      Option 1




                      “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                      “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                      He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                      This does not give the impression the speaker of the line and the person who shrugs are the same.





                      Note:

                      If you feel the reader might get confused about who is saying what, use the character's name or an attribute that clearly identifies the character.




                      “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                      Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.




                      Imagine that Arden's cloak is blue while Oddie's brown.




                      “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                      He shrugged, toeing the remnants of his blue cloak over his lap.







                      share|improve this answer


























                        13












                        13








                        13







                        First of all, I'll admit I had some trouble identifying who said




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”




                        I'm assuming that Oddie said it in reaction to Arden's suggestion and that Nat, the narrator, got exasperated when Arden shrugged. Please let me know if I got it wrong.





                        Option 2




                        “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                        This makes it look as if the speaker shrugs while saying the line.





                        Option 1




                        “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                        This does not give the impression the speaker of the line and the person who shrugs are the same.





                        Note:

                        If you feel the reader might get confused about who is saying what, use the character's name or an attribute that clearly identifies the character.




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.




                        Imagine that Arden's cloak is blue while Oddie's brown.




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        He shrugged, toeing the remnants of his blue cloak over his lap.







                        share|improve this answer













                        First of all, I'll admit I had some trouble identifying who said




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”




                        I'm assuming that Oddie said it in reaction to Arden's suggestion and that Nat, the narrator, got exasperated when Arden shrugged. Please let me know if I got it wrong.





                        Option 2




                        “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?” He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                        This makes it look as if the speaker shrugs while saying the line.





                        Option 1




                        “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        He shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap. I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.




                        This does not give the impression the speaker of the line and the person who shrugs are the same.





                        Note:

                        If you feel the reader might get confused about who is saying what, use the character's name or an attribute that clearly identifies the character.




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.




                        Imagine that Arden's cloak is blue while Oddie's brown.




                        “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                        He shrugged, toeing the remnants of his blue cloak over his lap.








                        share|improve this answer












                        share|improve this answer



                        share|improve this answer










                        answered 2 days ago









                        Sara CostaSara Costa

                        5,3432936




                        5,3432936























                            11














                            Yes. Not only should you start a new paragraph for every character, but you need to be clear about who is saying or doing what.



                            You mention the excerpt involves 3 characters. We know the first person part is Nat, the narrator. And of course the parts you label as being from Arden are from that character. But where is Oddie? Is he the speaker in the middle? If so, try this:




                            “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
                            hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                            Oddie looks up. “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                            Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.



                            I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.







                            share|improve this answer




























                              11














                              Yes. Not only should you start a new paragraph for every character, but you need to be clear about who is saying or doing what.



                              You mention the excerpt involves 3 characters. We know the first person part is Nat, the narrator. And of course the parts you label as being from Arden are from that character. But where is Oddie? Is he the speaker in the middle? If so, try this:




                              “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
                              hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                              Oddie looks up. “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                              Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.



                              I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.







                              share|improve this answer


























                                11












                                11








                                11







                                Yes. Not only should you start a new paragraph for every character, but you need to be clear about who is saying or doing what.



                                You mention the excerpt involves 3 characters. We know the first person part is Nat, the narrator. And of course the parts you label as being from Arden are from that character. But where is Oddie? Is he the speaker in the middle? If so, try this:




                                “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
                                hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                                Oddie looks up. “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                                Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.



                                I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.







                                share|improve this answer













                                Yes. Not only should you start a new paragraph for every character, but you need to be clear about who is saying or doing what.



                                You mention the excerpt involves 3 characters. We know the first person part is Nat, the narrator. And of course the parts you label as being from Arden are from that character. But where is Oddie? Is he the speaker in the middle? If so, try this:




                                “We can just call her Rose,” Arden suggests, leaning back on his
                                hands, any leftover semblances of sleep wiped clear from his face.



                                Oddie looks up. “I thought you said that name was already taken?”



                                Arden shrugs, toeing the remnants of his cloak over his lap.



                                I throw my arms in the air, exasperated.








                                share|improve this answer












                                share|improve this answer



                                share|improve this answer










                                answered 2 days ago









                                CynCyn

                                5,882738




                                5,882738























                                    3














                                    It's considered normal to start a new paragraph when somebody new speaks; however, it's not essential. I've read more than a few books where dialogue from two people happens in the same paragraph. When done correctly, it can be done without any confusion.



                                    The main point, however, is that it needs to be made clear who's speaking.



                                    Switching to a new paragraph is a stylistic way of indicating that the speaker has changed. But just switching paragraphs may not be enough. For example, there could be more than two characters. Switching to a new paragraph will likely not be sufficient to indicate that the conversation has switched out of an alternating discourse between two people and it's now a third or fourth character interjecting themselves into the dialogue.



                                    What can also be disconcerting is when the same character is speaking in a new paragraph. This is normally indicated with the lack of a closing quotation mark at the end of the previous paragraph. Nonetheless, that may not be easily spotted—and if it's missed, it can cause confusion.





                                    Whether it's different people in the same paragraph, different people in alternating paragraphs, or the same person in multiple paragraphs, narrative markers can be very helpful. If it's not clear (no matter what the format), break the speech to identify the speaker in some way.





                                    Incidentally, regardless of the paragraph breaks, it's not clear who is speaking the second line of dialogue in the passage you've provided.



                                    It's likely Oddie—but it could also be Nat. (It could even have been Arden, continuing on from the previous paragraph, if different words had been spoken.)



                                    Unless the speaker is clear when viewing the passage from its larger context, I would say you should give some kind of explicit indication of who that second line of dialogue is coming from.






                                    share|improve this answer






























                                      3














                                      It's considered normal to start a new paragraph when somebody new speaks; however, it's not essential. I've read more than a few books where dialogue from two people happens in the same paragraph. When done correctly, it can be done without any confusion.



                                      The main point, however, is that it needs to be made clear who's speaking.



                                      Switching to a new paragraph is a stylistic way of indicating that the speaker has changed. But just switching paragraphs may not be enough. For example, there could be more than two characters. Switching to a new paragraph will likely not be sufficient to indicate that the conversation has switched out of an alternating discourse between two people and it's now a third or fourth character interjecting themselves into the dialogue.



                                      What can also be disconcerting is when the same character is speaking in a new paragraph. This is normally indicated with the lack of a closing quotation mark at the end of the previous paragraph. Nonetheless, that may not be easily spotted—and if it's missed, it can cause confusion.





                                      Whether it's different people in the same paragraph, different people in alternating paragraphs, or the same person in multiple paragraphs, narrative markers can be very helpful. If it's not clear (no matter what the format), break the speech to identify the speaker in some way.





                                      Incidentally, regardless of the paragraph breaks, it's not clear who is speaking the second line of dialogue in the passage you've provided.



                                      It's likely Oddie—but it could also be Nat. (It could even have been Arden, continuing on from the previous paragraph, if different words had been spoken.)



                                      Unless the speaker is clear when viewing the passage from its larger context, I would say you should give some kind of explicit indication of who that second line of dialogue is coming from.






                                      share|improve this answer




























                                        3












                                        3








                                        3







                                        It's considered normal to start a new paragraph when somebody new speaks; however, it's not essential. I've read more than a few books where dialogue from two people happens in the same paragraph. When done correctly, it can be done without any confusion.



                                        The main point, however, is that it needs to be made clear who's speaking.



                                        Switching to a new paragraph is a stylistic way of indicating that the speaker has changed. But just switching paragraphs may not be enough. For example, there could be more than two characters. Switching to a new paragraph will likely not be sufficient to indicate that the conversation has switched out of an alternating discourse between two people and it's now a third or fourth character interjecting themselves into the dialogue.



                                        What can also be disconcerting is when the same character is speaking in a new paragraph. This is normally indicated with the lack of a closing quotation mark at the end of the previous paragraph. Nonetheless, that may not be easily spotted—and if it's missed, it can cause confusion.





                                        Whether it's different people in the same paragraph, different people in alternating paragraphs, or the same person in multiple paragraphs, narrative markers can be very helpful. If it's not clear (no matter what the format), break the speech to identify the speaker in some way.





                                        Incidentally, regardless of the paragraph breaks, it's not clear who is speaking the second line of dialogue in the passage you've provided.



                                        It's likely Oddie—but it could also be Nat. (It could even have been Arden, continuing on from the previous paragraph, if different words had been spoken.)



                                        Unless the speaker is clear when viewing the passage from its larger context, I would say you should give some kind of explicit indication of who that second line of dialogue is coming from.






                                        share|improve this answer















                                        It's considered normal to start a new paragraph when somebody new speaks; however, it's not essential. I've read more than a few books where dialogue from two people happens in the same paragraph. When done correctly, it can be done without any confusion.



                                        The main point, however, is that it needs to be made clear who's speaking.



                                        Switching to a new paragraph is a stylistic way of indicating that the speaker has changed. But just switching paragraphs may not be enough. For example, there could be more than two characters. Switching to a new paragraph will likely not be sufficient to indicate that the conversation has switched out of an alternating discourse between two people and it's now a third or fourth character interjecting themselves into the dialogue.



                                        What can also be disconcerting is when the same character is speaking in a new paragraph. This is normally indicated with the lack of a closing quotation mark at the end of the previous paragraph. Nonetheless, that may not be easily spotted—and if it's missed, it can cause confusion.





                                        Whether it's different people in the same paragraph, different people in alternating paragraphs, or the same person in multiple paragraphs, narrative markers can be very helpful. If it's not clear (no matter what the format), break the speech to identify the speaker in some way.





                                        Incidentally, regardless of the paragraph breaks, it's not clear who is speaking the second line of dialogue in the passage you've provided.



                                        It's likely Oddie—but it could also be Nat. (It could even have been Arden, continuing on from the previous paragraph, if different words had been spoken.)



                                        Unless the speaker is clear when viewing the passage from its larger context, I would say you should give some kind of explicit indication of who that second line of dialogue is coming from.







                                        share|improve this answer














                                        share|improve this answer



                                        share|improve this answer








                                        edited yesterday

























                                        answered yesterday









                                        Jason BassfordJason Bassford

                                        1,236111




                                        1,236111























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                                            I've seen both forms used, but in the first one it feels like he says it, and then he shrugs. While in the second one it feels like he is saying it as he is shrugging. Hope that helped <3






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                                              0














                                              I've seen both forms used, but in the first one it feels like he says it, and then he shrugs. While in the second one it feels like he is saying it as he is shrugging. Hope that helped <3






                                              share|improve this answer


























                                                0












                                                0








                                                0







                                                I've seen both forms used, but in the first one it feels like he says it, and then he shrugs. While in the second one it feels like he is saying it as he is shrugging. Hope that helped <3






                                                share|improve this answer













                                                I've seen both forms used, but in the first one it feels like he says it, and then he shrugs. While in the second one it feels like he is saying it as he is shrugging. Hope that helped <3







                                                share|improve this answer












                                                share|improve this answer



                                                share|improve this answer










                                                answered 2 days ago







                                                Alex Collins





































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