ShmoopTube

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[Coop and Dino singing]

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Have you ever been writing a narrative, but found that your dialogue's just a little bit…[A woman cooking a stew]

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bland? Maybe you thought it could use a little something to spice it up?

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This is not the right type of paprika...So what is

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the right ingredient...Dialects!

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A dialect is a particular way of speaking [Coop discussing what are dialects]

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a language in a certain part of the world.

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Even though a language like English is spoken all over the Earth, it changes from

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region to region.. which is why a vermont-native

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visiting mississippi might wonder if she's travelled to some sort of alternate dimension where English is an entirely different language.

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In the American South it's pretty common to hear "y'all," which means “you all.”

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We don’t know why, but people in the South love them some “y’all.” [Southern American man on a farm]

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So because a whole bunch of people in a particular region say it, "y'all" is a part of the Southern

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dialect. Dialects aren't just great for the diversity of [Girl walks to a writer's block sign]

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the English language; it can also be used when you're writing fiction.

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One common problem with dialogue is that sometimes all of the characters end up sounding the same.

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Which just isn’t realistic. Seriously, next time you’re in the cafeteria, take a second

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just to listen. No two people talk the same way..

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If there aren't clear differences in the voices of the various characters, your dialogue can [Girls sitting on a bench and two men appear]

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end up sounding like one single, boring voice.

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Which, for those of you who haven’t picked up on it yet, is a bad thing.

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Always at least consider sprinkling a dialect or two if it makes sense to do so. Maybe one of your

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characters is from France, and speaks English with a French dialect. [French woman eating a croissant]

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Or maybe one of them is from Southern California and speaks like a surfer.

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These two characters definitely won't sound alike.

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And their conversations together will probably be awkward

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But a word of warning – don’t overdo it with the dialects. [Dialects added to a stew pan]

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The last thing you want is for the doctor in your story to speak like he’s from Tunisia for no good reason.

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