1. essential life

    essential life New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 22, 2009
    Messages:
    55
    Likes Received:
    0

    Putting emphasis on italicized words

    Discussion in 'Word Mechanics' started by essential life, Nov 28, 2009.

    What if you're writing a flashback or something and the words are all in italics, but you want to emphasize a word? Underline it? Use normal text?
     
  2. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2006
    Messages:
    19,150
    Likes Received:
    1,034
    Location:
    Coquille, Oregon
    imo, you shouldn't use italics for more than a few words, in the first place... it's too hard to read long italicized passages... there's no need to use them for a flashback...
     
  3. DragonGrim

    DragonGrim New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 3, 2008
    Messages:
    817
    Likes Received:
    21
    Location:
    Iowa
    People do italicize paragraphs or even a few pages sometimes, but one just has to realize that a weakness will be an inability to stress a word.

    Personally, I agree with Mammamaia. I don’t like reading long stretches of italicized print.
     
  4. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    May 19, 2007
    Messages:
    36,161
    Likes Received:
    2,827
    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    You shouldn't be doing that. It's a misuse of italics.
     
  5. fantasy girl

    fantasy girl New Member

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2009
    Messages:
    590
    Likes Received:
    4
    In the Twilight Saga, Mrs. Meyer uses Italics when the Wolves are thinking to eachother, and to put emphasis on a word when the passage is in Italics she uses normal text.

    hope this helps,
    Fantasy Girl xx
     
  6. essential life

    essential life New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 22, 2009
    Messages:
    55
    Likes Received:
    0
    I'm not necessarily disputing your words. But don't a lot of professional authors do it?
     
  7. Lemex

    Lemex That's Lord Lemex to you. Contributor

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2007
    Messages:
    10,704
    Likes Received:
    3,425
    Location:
    Northeast England
    As does everyone else ...


    If you want to show a flashback I'd just use something else to show that, italics is a very bad idea when using this; but I've seen it done before - but it was in The Da Vinci Code.

    I would put an asteris to show the time frame has changed.
     
  8. ManhattanMss

    ManhattanMss New Member

    Joined:
    May 14, 2009
    Messages:
    625
    Likes Received:
    14
    Normal text is used in an italicized passage the same way italics is used to offset something in ordinary print. I'm not home where I can look up an example or cite a reliable style manual reference, but I see this done a lot in legal documents as well as in scholarly works, and I'm sure I've even seen it done in fiction. Of course, that doesn't mean your flashback should or must be in italics, although it's not unusual to see italics used to show reflective thoughts.
     
  9. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2006
    Messages:
    19,150
    Likes Received:
    1,034
    Location:
    Coquille, Oregon
    in re italicizing flashbacks and thoughts, that some do it does not make it a good thing to do...
     
  10. aniolel

    aniolel New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 15, 2009
    Messages:
    99
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Gibsonia, PA
    It also depends the rules of the publishing house...they are the ones who set the rules. As one of my writer friends said to me, keep it consistence.
     
  11. First time authors should not italicize often, IMO at least. I can suggest to maybe make a space between the last paragraph you've written before the flashback, so it is evident you are switching to something else, in this case a flash back. Then, keep it normal and you can italicize the words you want to have emphasis on.

    If you want to make the whole thing in italics, I can only assume the words you want to put an emphasis on can go in the normal font/not italics.
     
  12. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2006
    Messages:
    19,150
    Likes Received:
    1,034
    Location:
    Coquille, Oregon
    that is how it's done, if you must do it...
     
  13. Kas

    Kas New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 30, 2009
    Messages:
    567
    Likes Received:
    19
    Location:
    The ***hole of the world
    This is just one reason why you shouldn't be using italics that way in the first place.

    As others have noted, I don't like reading italicised print for long, either.
     

Share This Page

  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
    Dismiss Notice