How much continuous dialogue are you guys writing, anyway? We're talking about novels, not screenplays.
I was borrowing from your post and did not want to misinterpret anything, and therefore apologized in advance had I done so. Just covering my bases is all.
I will admit to being a bit gruff. And then I was ganged up on by a few others. I did not mean to ruffle any feathers(even though I did). And now I have to defend myself. Sorry for this whole thing getting carried away.
Unicorn was reference to the unicorn that appears when a thread gets locked. The smell is growing stronger. I hope @Pixiebells is able to read your posts and pick up the subtle anger, outrage and frustration evident without any adjectival styled tags whatsoever. Your posts provide more than ample examples of the emotion she feels may not be transmissible via dialog alone. And perhaps my sarcastic use of the word, "subtle".
Except you are essentially agreeing with us that "said" is a good word to use, and should be used. The only person who feels otherwise is OP. Your ranting is for nought.
I think I speak for everyone when I say we'd all appreciate you leaving the forum if you're planning on continuing to act like this.
It's an excellent lesson in writing though. Remember, it's not what you write, it's how you express it.
You know what's weird, I can now genuinely say I kinda like cave troll, despite previous posts. He says what he thinks, and I dig it.
Oh, I didn't mean to imply the opposite. Of course you wouldn't include anything in a story without a reason. But because that was a thread about dialogue tags, the implication in that particular post—at least as I saw it—was that you avoid writing three-way conversations, unless forced to use them, BECAUSE it means you'll need to use dialogue tags. At least that's how I read that post. Avoiding three-way (or any other multiple) conversations because they add nothing to the story is one thing. Avoiding them because you don't like to use dialogue tags is another. If I am wrong about the meaning of your post, then I concede your point. I did warn it was a rant! I was in a mood ...I admit it.
:sim: Ladies and gentlemen, clean-up is underway. Let's put in a bit more effort to ensure a civil and productive atmosphere in the future. I just got done sharpening my kukri, but even so, let's keep the number of rolling heads to a minimum.
Are you guys timing these tiffs? Someone found out the angry pink unicorn's time zone and now this kind of stuff happens when it's asleep? `Cause this is the second time in a row! Admittedly, I don't mind Samus stepping in every now and then; she's cool. Anyway, the thread is back in business. Behave yourselves, o good people of WF.
I find myself positively delighted whenever I see this being used. Even more so when it's not a sex scene 'cause I'm a brat.
Exactly. If by your admittance your dialogue is bland, you have more pressing concerns than what tags to use.
There've been several posters who have disliked my comment about how little I like to use "said" or any word like it. I contend that it is very possible to convey who is speaking without using such words. Below is an example in support of my point. I'd like your feedback on it.
@Justin Rocket I think that works fine, except for the grammatical errors. That's called using 'beats,' and I do a lot of that as well, though I'm happy to use 'said' because it is essentially invisible to most readers and doesn't cause any problems. Here is how the text in your example should look: "Come on, they're gonna start without us!" The boy tugged incessantly on his older sister's arm. "Hold on, let me finish!" She wiped her fingers with a paper towel trying to remove the glitter from the project she was working on. He shifted his weight from foot to foot. Anxious, he looked to her like he was trying not to pee. "Okay." She rose to her feet, laughing, and tossed the dirty towel into the waste bin. "Let's go." You could probably quibble over the last sentence, but generally when you're using a beat like that you want a fully stop after the dialogue and another one after the beat.
