Dialogue scripts

The long dash (—) is generally used to indicate both the interventions
the dialogues of the characters (dialogue scripts) like the parentheses of
narrator. In the first case, the hyphen is attached to the initial of the word with the
that begins the parliament, with the indent of the first line of the paragraph (it is
say, text "entered"). In the second case, it is preceded by a space
when the clause begins, and followed by space when it ends (the latter
The dash is only used when the clause is within the dialogue; when it is
situated at the end must never be closed: see later, point 1.9). These
Ten examples capture their most frequent uses:

I have discovered that I have a brain and I am starting to read.

[1]

Oh, thank you. Thank you very much for your words,
Jacqueline.

We are many in the family,

all.

Surely, in the long run,

it will be fixed.

—Sophie, come back! —Stingo insisted—. I need to talk to you.

right now.
—And what do you understand about that? —Stephen jumped in—. You haven't read.
a verse in your life.

I would have loved to write... poetry.

Essay. A good novel.

This cannot go on like this. Things have gone too far.

He got up, while looking at his hands. I have to
overcome myself, end this madness. [8]

This cannot continue like this. Things have gone too far.
He stood up, while looking at his hands. I have to
overcome myself, put an end to this madness. [8 bis]
 Yes, my friend, I am amazed by your bravery,
And after a brief pause, he added: I truly admire your blood.
cold.

I know what you're thinking —said the owner—: about the color.
red. Everyone does the same.

Let's briefly discuss, point by point, these examples.

1.1. The simplest case is the first one. Just notice that the dash
The dialogue starter is attached to the first word of the speech. It would be
aerror indicate it like this:

I have discovered that I have a head and I am starting to read.

1.2. As seen in the second example, the closing dash is considered

superfluous —and therefore it is eliminated— when the paragraph ends with an aside
of the narrator. It is incorrect to indicate it like this:

Oh, thank you. Thank you very much for your words,
Jacqueline—.

1.3. In the third example, note that the dashes enclosing the clause of
narrators are attached to this, not separated from it; but it should be noted that neither
tacked to the parliament of the character. Therefore, it would be incorrect to indicate it as
these two ways:

We are many in the family,

all.

—We are many in the family—Agostino interjected— and we work.

all.

1.4. In the fourth example, the comma that comes after the word 'larga' must
go after the clause, never before. That is, it should not be indicated like this:

Surely, in the long run, Carlota replied decisively, everything

it will be fixed.
1.5, 1.6, 1.7. In examples five, six, and seven, it can be observed that
there is a closing point after the narrator's aside, even when the
parliament of the character prior to the section should have exclamation marks, of
question mark or ellipses (symbols that, in reality, have no function)
properly speaking). Therefore, these dialogues should not
indicate it as follows:

—Sophie, come back! —Stingo insisted— I have to talk to you

right now.

—And what do you understand about that?—Stephen jumped in—You haven't read a
turn in your life.

—How I would have loved to write... —she whispered— Poetry.

Essay. A good novel.

1.8. In the first variant of example eight [8], we see that before the section
The narrator does not have a period. This choice can be justified by stating that, if
Well, the section has no direct relation to the dialogue, it is considered implicit.
a verb of saying, to say, to assert, to add, to ask, to insist, to interject, etc.
(«—dijo y se levantó», «—dijo levantándose», «—dijo y, acto seguido, se
"raised", etc.) .

But if it is considered that the beginning has no direct relation to the parliament
previously, the dialogue can be arranged as indicated in the example [8
Note that, in the example we provide below, we put
point after 'far away' and that the narrator's clause begins with
uppercase.

This cannot go on like this. Things have gone too far.

He stood up, while looking at his hands. I have to
overcome myself, put an end to this madness.

In any case, regarding the closing script of the clause, it should not
mark with the point before the dash, as in this example (which is, for
so, erroneous):

This cannot go on like this. Things have gone too far.

He got up while looking at his hands. I have to
overcome myself, put an end to this madness.
1.9, 1.10. Also in the ninth and tenth examples there is a marked
tendency towards unification, in the sense that the two points usually appear
after the dash that closes the narrator's clause. According to this criterion
—which also has the virtue of simplicity—, this is overlooked
distinction: in the ninth example, the colons belong to the clause of
narrator, while in the tenth they are part of the parliament of
character; this is clearly seen if we remove the parentheses:

Yes, my friend, I am amazed by your bravery. I truly admire your

cold blood.

I already know what you are thinking: about the color red. Everyone does it.
same.

2. When a character's dialogue is distributed over several paragraphs, it

Due to its length, starting from the second paragraph, dashes should not be used.
only quotation marks to continue —it is worth insisting on this— should not
close at the end.

Yes. Because I hadn't thought about it before. I hadn't

I wanted to do it. The details then acquired an incredible
importance. It overwhelmed me to find myself in New York again,
Honestly. I felt like a stranger, as if that were not
were my city.
When we arrived at Hamond Hill, everyone was there.
room. And the same anxiety that I had felt before was repeated in
those moments with my brothers and my sister. I don't
I got tired of looking at them. I also saw them as strangers,
as if they were not of my own flesh...
And remember what I tell you. You asked me to tell you this and
that's what I'm doing. We meet with the others and
we talked to dad and mom, who had organized the meeting
as if it were a congress. The only thing missing was
cards in the flaps.

2.1. We will also use this type of quotation marks whenever a dialogue appears.
inside another dialogue, but in this case, after the quotes (which
it should also not be closed) the corresponding dash must be included.
 The story of Arturo and Raquel would even be funny if not
it was so tragic. They had only one meal a day, until he
the idea occurred to him. And I remember perfectly - he continued explaining
Jacques - the conversation they had:
“Stop complaining,” he said to her. “I already know how we can...
to eat.
"—How? —she asked, astonished."
—Very simple —he answered—. Go to the Maternity and tell them
You say you are pregnant. They will give you food and not you.
they will ask nothing.
"But I'm not pregnant!" she shrieked.
"And what?" he replied. "One or two pillows are enough.
It is our last opportunity and we cannot let it slip away.

Note that the sections of the characters whose conversation it transcribes

Jacques also comes with dashes, instead of opening and closing quotes each time.
In these cases, the regulation may be sacrificed for greater clarity.
expository, since the risk of confusion is minimal (see point 3).
We believe that this provision is simpler than the one listed at
continuation, made based on Latin and English quotes, in which they reach
accumulate nothing less than three punctuation marks (,"¿):

"Stop complaining," he said. "I know how we can eat."

"How?" she asked, astonished.

And not to mention the doubts about whether the comma in the first parliament should
go before or after the quotes, in case we wanted to unify it with
the second part of the parliament, which ends with a period and quotation marks ("Let it go now
"stop complaining," he said).

3. In the dialogues, the remarks that correspond to the character who is

talking should go in parentheses, not dashes, because they could
to confuse oneself with a narrator's aside (the second example shows the way)
incorrectly mark them):

That night I dreamed (or at least that's what I remember) that Teresa
and you were walking by the edge of the lake —Miguel confessed anxiously.

That night I dreamed - or at least that is what I believe I remember - that

Teresa and you...
4. It is possible for a dialogue to start with ellipses and with an initial.
lowercase. This happens when a character resumes a conversation.
interrupted by the parliament of another character. Note that, in the third
for example, that the ellipsis is attached to the hyphen, and therefore
separated from the first word of the dialogue ('and'):

It depends on how his words are interpreted,

Miss Fischer is insecure—. I mean that when a
a girl cannot bring the butter to a man without
to blush up to one's ears...
I completely understand your distress - he interrupted with
the roughness of Miss Pearl.
... and when she thanks him and then asks if he wants
a cookie as if he were the family doctor... I don't know if
understand what I mean.

It is an inadmissible error to use quotation marks throughout a narrative work.

of opening and closing —which systematically appear in works
Anglo-Saxon, German, and frequently, although not always, in the Italian.
instead of dashes. Quotation marks should be reserved for loose dialogues.
that appear within a long description by the narrator.

5.1. If the use of quotation marks instead of dashes is combined with excessive fidelity
typographically original, the result may be theoretically unjustifiable and
contrary to all regulations (see, in the following example, the curious way
(incorrect) of introducing the verbs dicendi, which appear in lowercase although
they are preceded by a point). The fragment we offer is taken from the
latest Spanish version —the best, in literary terms— of the novel
The Sound and the Fury

"It's too cold," said Versh. "You are not going out."

«Qué sucede ahora». dijo Madre.

"He wants to go out," said Versh.

"Let it out," said Uncle Maury.

"It's too cold," said Mother. "It's better that he stays."

Inside. Benjamin. Come on. Shut up.
5.2. The provision that usually appears in works should not be followed either.
French, a curious mix of quotes, commas, and dashes: the first
parliament begins with quotation marks, in the subsequent ones dashes are used and the
dialogue generally closes again with quotation marks:

I don't want to see you as a stranger.

Do you prefer not to see me at all?, I insisted.

“Let’s say it is that,” he said curtly.

6. Contrary to what frequently happens in Anglo-Saxon works and

Italians, the dialogues in narrative will usually go in a new paragraph.
(except, of course, when they are brief and are within a paragraph that is)
preferably do not split; see point 5). Note - and this rule must
follow seamlessly— that the quotation marks appearing in the dialogues of
They are systematically replaced by dashes, as we have already said.

This is the original English:

For herself, Jane wanted to find out diplomatically, before asking

straight out, whether the blue suit was here or whether it had
gone off too. "I thought I saw John," she said. "Dashing out of
the Post Office. What was he wearing?" "A raincoat," said
Martha. "And that good-looking blue suit?" persisted Jane.
"Why, yes, I think so," said Martha. "Yes, he was," she added.
more positively. Jane caught her breath. "How long is he going to
To he gone? Just today, said Martha. He has to see
somebody for dinner. He'll be back late tonight. "Oh," said
Jane.

And this is the Spanish version:

Jane wanted to discover diplomatically, without asking it.

directly, whether the blue suit was there or if there was also
missing.
I think I've seen John,
Mail. What was he wearing?
--A raincoat--Martha said.
And that beautiful blue dress? Jane insisted.
Well, yes, I think so, replied Martha, and then she added
Surely—: Yes, I had it.
Jane held her breath: [3]
 How long will you be away?
Only today,
He/She will arrive tonight, late.
—Ah —Jane replied.

See in the paragraphs marked with [1], [2], and [3] the freedoms that in
regarding the score, the translator (well versed in the subject, by
certain). Its version is undoubtedly more fluid than a punctuation
too faithful to the original English, like this:

I think I saw John, he said, as I was leaving.

Mail.
Well yes, I think so, said Martha. Yes, he was carrying it.
he added later confidently.
Jane held her breath.

Note that in paragraph [1] a period is removed and the sentence gains in fluency;
in [2], the two interventions by Martha are unified into a single clause; and in
In [3], the closing period is replaced by a colon, to clarify which character
speak.

6.1. Unless in exceptional cases, the rule in point 6 must be followed rigorously.
when there are several characters speaking: place the dialogues one after the other,
even if it's with dashes, it becomes confusing and unnecessarily complicates the
reading. See this example, belonging to the novel The Group, by Mary
McCarthy (1966):

Libby became excessively thoughtful. She brought a finger to her...

front. —I think so —he asserted, nodding three times—. Do you think
really...? --he began quickly. Lakey signaled to a
taxi with the hand. —Kay left the cousin in the shade, with the
hope that one of us would provide him with something better.
“Lakey!” murmured Dottie, shaking her head in reproach.
Wow, Lakey —Libby said with a falsetto laugh—; only you
these things occur to you.

6.2. The paragraph break is also commonly used in those cases where the clause
the narrator begins with a verb saying and continues, after the period, with
a considerable length text (for example, a description about the
characteristics of the speaking character, a note about the place
where the action takes place or details of various nature). See the
example:

—Todo está bien —dijo Arturo.

He was dressed in a t-shirt and sports shorts.
and she was wearing garden sandals. Dressed this way, she fascinated
even more to the agent he had met in June, the day
who rented the house. Arturo seemed mysterious and strong. His
the face brought to mind salt, wind, foreign women,
solitude and sun.