1. Mr_Swashbuckler

    Mr_Swashbuckler New Member

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    Inner Voice

    Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by Mr_Swashbuckler, Nov 5, 2011.

    Hi all.

    I wonder if you could help me out with something.

    How do I write down inner voice? For example:

    I don’t care what they think. She thought to herself.

    Do I need to have it between ‘’? Or should I put it in Italics?

    Any guidance on this would be really appreciated.

    Thank you :)
     
  2. Jhunter

    Jhunter Mmm, bacon. Contributor

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    If you have "She thought to herself," than I wouldn't put anything. Because it is already plain that she is.

    If you just have "I don't care what they think," than I would use italics.
     
  3. Mr_Swashbuckler

    Mr_Swashbuckler New Member

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    Thanks for that.
     
  4. Jhunter

    Jhunter Mmm, bacon. Contributor

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    Anytime.
     
  5. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    I'm opposed to using italics for thoughts. I'm not going to say it's incorrect; I'll let others debate that point. :) I just dislike it and prefer to rephrase to eliminate any need for quotes, italics, _or_ "She thought to herself."

    An example:

    Original: She looked around the living room with a grimace. It was dusty, with a heap of shoes in the corner and at least a month's worth of newspapers on the table. Not the way to impress the in-laws. I don't care what they think, she thought to herself.

    How I'd change it: She looked around the living room with a grimace. It was dusty, with a heap of shoes in the corner and at least a month's worth of newspapers on the table. Not the way to impress the in-laws. Eh, who cares what they think?

    ChickenFreak
     
  6. Jhunter

    Jhunter Mmm, bacon. Contributor

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    I actually like italics, whenever I see them coming up on a page I get excited.

    But to each their own. :)
     
  7. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    i'm in the 'italics annoy me' camp... good writers don't need to resort to fancy fontery to let their readers know a character is thinking...

    as for that, it makes no sense, since it should be all one sentence, with a comma replacing the period...
     

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