Stutter that changes words mid sentence
I wanted to have someone correct themselves mid-sentence, and I remembered some guides I read on the subject. They only seemed to allow only the most basic of stutters, but I want one where someone starts saying one word, then switches to another as they're saying it.
Feitla took a kneeling position. “Lord Kor—”
“I’m warden now, don’t be so formal,” Korsin said.
“Lo-umm-Warden..."
Also, if I start a sentence like that, do all three words get capitals or just the first word that was cut-off?
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1 answer
Depending on whether the character actually stutters or just rewords mid-thought, you might write:
"Lo— I mean, Warden," he amended.
"Lor— er, Warden," he amended.
"Lo— Warden," he amended.
In each case, the M-dash indicates an audible but very short pause, maybe accompanied by a quick head shake or wince or some other tiny facial gesture. Italics indicate how firmly the speaker substitutes the new word.
I would have no space between the cut-off syllable and the M-dash, because it's filling the space of the rest of the word, but a space after it, because the speaker is changing to a new word, not stuttering through the same one. (that would be "Lo-Lo-Lord" or something similar)
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