The dialogue tag is a pain in the butt. There I’ve gone and said it. I hate dialogue tags.
Comma or period.
Capital or not, following or before.
Clear or not clear who’s talking.
To smirk or giggle something or not – can’t.
Is the word ‘said’ invisible or not.
Stick to rules or play with them.
Stop at tag or go on and on about action or description.
Yes, these blasted tags are a royal pain.
So, how do you deal with them?
– is at a complete thought.
– what reads comfortable to you
– what flows
– what can and should be cut.
– and, yes, what does rule book tell you.
The rule book?
Yes, the rule book. Sorry but there are some areas of writing that have to follow the rules. This is why you learn the rules in order, to know which you can break, which can be played with, and which you have to follow.
Dialogue tags…who likes them or reads them anyways?