What can prevent overusing dialogue tags, in an elegant way? The character is doing something and you're trying to explain that actively. Is said better than says? It's confusing, X said -vs- X says Said X -vs- Says X X said (as he did something) -vs- X says, (doing something) Should you keep everything present tense, setting up an action? Or action, then use 'said'? What's the right way to go about this?
IMHO there is no "right way." If you want to write in the present tense, write in the present tense. In my experience, most novels are written in the past tense.
This really depends on where/when your narrator is in relation to the story. Try to imagine them as a character. Even if they're unseen, like a ghost, define them as someone who exists in a place and time. Are they telling the reader about the story long after the fact or exactly as it happens? You have to get that right in your head, and that will tell you whether or not you're using said or says. Past or present. Even if the narrator IS the MC, they can be the MC from a different place or time, so they're not necessarily the same person with the same POV. I say this, but it's possible to have a narrator recount a story in the past as present tense. That's called historical present. That's a really fun tense with a very strong voice. It likes loose grammars. It's also possible for the narrator to be like a news reporter, and though the events happen live, he/she reports them as past tense. It's like they're a second behind the action. Honestly though, if you're really fighting tenses, I would just use past tense. That's the safer of your choices. So my vote is for past tense "said."
It's up to you, but I write everything in past tense. I think you get into less logical "situations" in the story if you do it that way. As for dialogue tags, I USED to write things like this: John looked at the menu but couldn't decide what he wanted. "Are you ready to order?" the waitress asked. "I'll have one of those," he replied, motioning over to the interesting Nescafe cup at the table next to them. "Which?" she asked, not seeing what he was referring to. "That iced coffee the gentleman in the apricot scarf is having." NOW, I keep the dialogue as simple as possible. Everything is said, asked, and replied. John looked at the menu but couldn't decide what he wanted. He noticed an interesting Nescafe cup on the table next to them that looked appealing. "Are you ready to order?" the waitress asked. "I'll have one of those," he said. She tried to see what he was referring to but couldn't make it out. "Which?" she asked. "That iced coffee the gentleman in the apricot scarf is having." ----- You can do what you want. That's my two cents on the topic. You can write the first way but your editor might ask you to change it to the second, I don't know. Whatever you choose, the best thing is to be consistent throughout your story with it. Hope that helps! TD
I think dialogue tags get way overused. I tend to write long passages of dialogue without any, then go back over it adding them only when they serve a purpose, or it his unclear who is talking.
“We need to get this done,”—he lifted the box to the table—“or it will be too late.” This punctuation is a way to get actions into dialogue without tags.
Thanks for the input! I'm slowly transitioning towards not using the tags myself as well truthfully. But this is also an excellent alternative. Cycling those three can help readers not lose track on the speakers too.
I've noticed a change in tag placement. Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath... Muley said, “I’ve covered her with brush. Nobody couldn’t find her.” If that was in a twenty-first century book, it would be... “I’ve covered her with brush. Nobody couldn’t find her,” Muley said. Stephen King has tags in the beginning, middle and end... From his latest Billy Summers... "That's right," Billy says.... And later... Nick says, "Most people don't carry pictures..." I try to use a beat, but sometimes it looks contrived so I’ll add a tag and I feel you can put them at the beginning, middle and end. I get irritated when authors use tags at every line when only two people are talking. It must not be that big of a deal because I see best sellers doing it.
Depends of it is present tense or past tense. I use said for past and says for present. I use them because they blend into the background of the words.
You want to keep your tense for dialog tags consistent with the tense of your story. If your story is in past tense, use said. If your story is in present tense, use says. It's really not confusing. Just stick with the tense you're already using.
A lot of readers are annoyed by present tense (X says...), and imo, it is a lot easier to write in past tense. As long as it is consistent, your characters should sound active. As others have mentioned, you do not always need the tag if you follow the dialog by a character action, which could also help the scene feel more energized (if done well and not used excessively.)
