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Q&A Indicating multiple different modes of speech (fantasy language or telepathy)

I agree that the right-justified text blocks are ugly as heck. I'd recommend italics for non-English and a non-quotation punctuation mark for telepathic dialogue. Mostly it's a matter of deciding w...

posted 5y ago by Evil Sparrow‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Answer
#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-14T20:45:27Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44003
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T11:30:13Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/44003
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T11:30:13Z (almost 5 years ago)
I agree that the right-justified text blocks are ugly as heck. I'd recommend italics for non-English and a non-quotation punctuation mark for telepathic dialogue. Mostly it's a matter of deciding what standard looks best for you and making sure the reader understands.

As an example, here's what mine looks like:

**Normal English dialogue** - no italics: "What are you grinning about?"

**Telepathic dialogue** - angle brackets, italics: \<_Wait! Don't touch that!_\>

**Internal dialogue** - italics: _I wonder if that's always been there._

**Demonic, elven or other fantasy speech** - quotation marks, italics: "_Istjak vaharr?_" (Not sure whether you're planning to have your Orcish text translated for the reader or not. Another option is to add things like "he replied in Orcish.")

As Rasdashan says, consistency is key.

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2019-03-24T18:52:19Z (over 5 years ago)
Original score: 19