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Post by amanda on Sept 14, 2012 18:11:07 GMT
Goodness me, thought Martin. This is worse than I feared!
"Goodness me," thought Martin. "This is worse than I feared!"
Which is correct? Do you need speech marks around thought?
Thanks
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Post by Tone on Sept 14, 2012 19:59:46 GMT
Tone thinks, "Yes".  But yours might better be: "Goodness me," thought Martin, "this is worse than I feared!" Tone |
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Post by Verbivore on Sept 14, 2012 22:47:46 GMT
Amanda:
It depends on the document's written style, but be internally consistent.
If speech is enclosed in quotation marks, then thoughts also -- unless there is another means of showing thought content, such as italics; however, italics are out if they are already used to any great extent, e.g. for emphasis.
I have read books containing much dialogue (and unspoken thought) that have used no quotation marks at all. It can be done -- if the writing style is suited -- with no inconvenience or confusion of the reader. However, I'm not sure I'd recommend this style to any but very competent authors / editors. (I don't know how you consider your writing skills.)
If confident it would work, go for the simple, uncluttered look; if not, go with tradition, and include thoughts in " "s.
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Post by amanda on Sept 15, 2012 22:07:49 GMT
Thank you for your help. I was asking on behalf of a friend who has written a pithy political satire type story (of 100,000 words) and is polishing it in the hopes of 'doing something with it'! (I would add that the sentence isn't from the 'book'; I just made one up as an example  |
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