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Emulating slurred speech.



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Wed Jun 27, 2012 12:41 pm
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Love says...



Hello. I am writing a novel, surprisingly, and need to write the dialogue of the main character whose speech is slurred and quiet... The character, in effect, is myself, and I am just thinking on how to inform the reader about this in the best way as well as whether I should edit the spelling of the words... Any help would be appreciated :)
I was Amareth :)
  





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Wed Jun 27, 2012 2:09 pm
Lumi says...



Commonly, you'll see authors try one of two methods when utilizing abnormal dialog in their writing. The boring route is to utilize dialog tags to specify how a person's speech may be modified without modifying the text itself.

Speech slurring beneath the alcohol, Paul yelled, "I don't need you! I don't need anyone!"


The alternative route is to create legitimate dialect, which takes time and alertness. A prime example of this is Push by Sapphire, in which the MC's dialog is written in a very unrefined, disconnected ghetto dialect. I've attempted to read the novel three times, and can't get more than halfway through with the heavy dialect.

To do that, you need to have a sharp ear to know what sounds and slurs you're looking for. If you can't get it in your head, say it aloud and then spell it out on the page. Just make sure there's some semblance to legitimate words so the reader won't be lost--in which case it's on your head.
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Wed Jun 27, 2012 2:27 pm
Love says...



Thanks :)

Ok, so I will probably use the boring method, but also attempt to write down the speech a little slurred... I hope that it will be possible, though, for I am unsure whether a few things could be written. Thanks again :)
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Fri Jun 29, 2012 3:51 pm
Tenyo says...



Interesting predicament.

I think there are more ways of showing a slur than word tags and literal dialogue.

Do you know anyone with an odd accent, quirk or speech impairment? If you do, you'll notice one of two things happening. Either you'll be aware of it all the time and get incredibly annoyed with them (like I do with like, people who like, say like, like, all the time, like) or you'll just get used to it.

If you keep your reader constantly aware of this impediment, then it can become annoying. I avoided reading The Secret Garden for years because the dialogue irritated me so much at first. For both competent and slower readers altered spelling can really trip them up.

So how else can you show it?

Add attitude to it
With people who are quiet or slow of speech then watch their attitude- the kind of frustrations they would encounter with people interupting or ignoring them would show through in their mannerisms. Perhaps they would be apologetic, or angry. For example: 'Excuse me, sorry, I was just wondering, oh you're talking, never mind, sorry.' Or 'We hadn't even noticed him stammering in the corner until he blurted out in a trembling voice: 'This is important!' You can slip these things in as casually as you would any other quirk. You'll be highlighting the quirk (whic your reader will know about) and giving a little more depth into personality too.

Narrate it
A fantastic technique I saw was in a Russian novel that I can't for the life of me remember the name of, but in this there was a young boy with a speech impairment, and the author would use narration rather than dialogue, like 'he stood up and said that he didn't want to go. 'Why?' She asked. He said that he was tired.' You may not want to use it all the time, but when your character has a long paragraph to say then you could narrate it, or if it's something short you could say 'he agreed/disagreed.'

Point it out
You could simply have them talk normally and only make your reader aware of it when your narrator (who will be used to it) would be made aware of it. An example would be: 'I had completely forgotten about the high pitch of his voice until he stood, nervous as could be, and in an entire octave higher said...' Or 'I never meant to snap at him. My patience was as thin as air and right now in the middle of a crisis the slow slurring of his words was the last thing I needed.'

Use Variety
And of course, dialogue tags and altering spelling. I would say that when in doubt, variety is best, it makes things interesting and gives you lots of techniques to play around with.

You can use all of these techniques even in first person, just tweak the viewpoints a little. A first person MC could notice the reactions of others to be different once in a while, vary their internal frustrations, or omit their own dialogue.
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Fri Jun 29, 2012 4:16 pm
Love says...



Thanks for the advice :) Indeed, I lersobally, due to my own speech impairment, speek as little as possible and always let other people finish first, so I will certainly have to keep that in mind. And I have not considered narration... Thanks :)
I was Amareth :)
  








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