1. • Take a Scavenger Hunt Quiz 2 from the front table.
• Using your handouts and/or notes, complete the quiz. You may work
with a partner or in groups if you so wish.
• You may write on the quiz paper.
• Note that there is a word bank on the back.
• Turn your quiz into Ms. Hargen when you are finished.
• Read or do some other activity quietly while you wait for others to
finish their quizzes.
3. Writing Dialogue
• Attributive — an attributive credits the speech to the person who said it.
E.g. He said, she said, he exclaimed, she yelled, he muttered, she announced
“I’ve won the lottery!” he shouted. She said, “You complete me.”
Avoid overly dramatic or odd attributives (e.g. harangued, retorted, pontificated,
averred, elaborated)
• Beat — a beat is a piece of action, description, or internal processing for the
speaker, which also indicates who is talking.
John slammed his fist on the table, his nostrils flaring. “I told you, I’m not going!”
“I’ll go pack.” My hands left sweatprints on the chair.
4. Commas, Quotes, and Question Marks
Introducing dialogue with an attributive:
Nick said, "I'm going to buy myself a triple cheeseburger and a super sized
order of fries."
Following dialogue with an attributive:
"I'm going to buy myself a triple cheeseburger and a super size order of
fries,” Nick said.
Question mark before attributive:
Do you want one of my fries?" Nick asked.
Comma outside of
quotation marks
Comma outside of
quotation marks
Question mark within
quotation marks, no comma
5. Formatting Dialogue
• When you change speakers, you must change paragraphs.
“I don’t know that I can enjoy any kind of water anymore.”
“Why not?” I already knew.
“After that little girl, little Ann Nash, was left in the creek to
drown.” She paused to sip her tea. “I knew her, you know.”
• As long as one speaker is talking, stay in the same paragraph, except if
that speaker is long-winded.
Helps
reader
follow along
and know
who is
speaking;
don’t
always need
attributives
or beats
6. Dialogue Punctuation (5 min)
Paragraph and punctuate the following dialogue:
no pictures of the fish? not yet he replied she paused and then
asked somebody is really gonna pay you a hundred thousand? He
sighed well, at least fifty that’s if I get what he wants she said what
are you going to do with all that money? he shrugged try to buy you
back Catherine’s laugh died in her throat she looked hurt that’s not
really funny, R.J. I guess not
8. Classwork/Homework:
Hills Like White Elephants by Hemingway
• Select 3 markers and create a
key at the top of your paper to
color code lines for 1) the
American, 2) the girl, and 3) the
bartender.
• Highlight the dialogue with the
color corresponding to the
speaker.
• Circle attributives.
• Bracket beats.
= the American
= the girl
= the bartender
“What should we drink?” the girl asked.
“I’ve never seen one.” [The man drank
his beer.]
Examples
Key
You do not need to answer the questions at the
end of the story.
