How to Format Dialogue in a Book

Strong, easy-to-read dialogue is essential to good narrative work. Learning how to format dialogue should be a top priority for writers.

The rules for how to format dialogue in a novel or short story may seem complicated at first. But having a strong grasp on the various tools available for formatting dialogue can help you take your writing to the next level.

Let’s go over the recommendations from the ​Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition), the accepted style guide for American fiction.

I will be citing the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) throughout this article. I strongly encourage you to grab a copy of the style guide and explore these sections yourself.

How to Punctuate Dialogue

With all the rules about how to write good dialogue, figuring out where to place punctuation can seem tricky. For American style, here are the basic rules:

• Periods and commas are always inside quotation marks.
• Exclamation points and question marks are inside quotation marks only if they belong to the quoted material.

Here are a couple of examples.

The note read “I’ll be back soon!”

Did she really mean it when she said, “I don’t care about you”?

In the case of a quotation ending with a question mark or exclamation point, you can use both a question mark and exclamation point, if necessary.

Who shouted, “The building is on fire!”?

I love the song “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf?”!

Since extraneous punctuation can be distracting, this should only be done if it is absolutely the best option.

If both the overall sentence and the quoted material ends with the same punctuation, you only need to use it once.

Did your dad ask, “Where have you been?”

How to Format Dialogue in American vs. British Style

American style uses double quotation marks with single quotation marks for nested dialogue.

British style, on the other hand, uses single quotation marks with double quotation marks for nested dialogue.

When using the American style, always place periods and commas inside quotation marks. Exclamation marks and question marks go inside quotation marks only if they are part of the quoted material.

I finished reading “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

Have you heard the phrase “spill the tea”?

With British style, all punctuation goes inside quotation marks only if it is part of the quoted material.

I finished reading ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’.

When selecting the style, consider your target audience. Choose a style, and keep it consistent throughout the manuscript.

Note that British style typically places all punctuation logically. Unlike in American style, British style would place the period outside the quotation mark if the period does not belong to the quoted material.

(CMOS 6.126)

How to Punctuate Dialogue Tags

It’s important to know how to format dialogue tags so your dialogue is clear and correct. A few basic rules:

• ​Use a comma between dialogue and dialogue tags.
• Use a period if you end the dialogue without a tag (including when using action beats).
• If the dialogue tag breaks the sentence in two, use commas before and after the tag.

Here are a few examples.

“Unicorns are not real,” he said.

“Actually, I rode one to work.” She crossed her arms.

He said, “You’re lying.”

“You’re right,” she said. “It was a dragon.”

“When you say these things,” he said, “I don’t know what to believe.”

Note that if you use a question mark or exclamation mark, no comma is needed.

“Can I ride a dragon too?” he asked.

“You’re not magical enough!” she said.

When a direct quotation is introduced mid-sentence but forms a part of the surrounding sentence, no comma is needed.

The recipient said he was “extremely grateful.”

(CMOS 6.40,  6.125, 13.14, 13.15)

​”Smart” Quotes vs. “Dumb” Quotes

Modern word processors use “smart” quotes. These are curly quotes. “Dumb” quotes are straight quotes.

​Standard manuscript format calls for smart quotes. If you’re writing in Microsoft Word, you can enable smart quotes by selecting Tools – Autocorrect Options – AutoFormat As You Type. Then check the box labeled “‘Straight quotes’ with ‘smart quotes.’”

To replace all straight quotes in a document with smart quotes, simply follow the above steps to enable smart quotes. Then in the Find and Replace dialogue box, search for double quotation marks (“) and replace them with the same symbol. Word will automatically format them as smart quotes.

​Note that single quotation marks and apostrophes can also be straight or smart. Consider apostrophes used in contractions.

Again, smart quotes are the standard. Enable and replace smart single quotes using the same steps you used for double quotation marks.

​(CMOS 6.115, 6.117)

How to Use ​Single Quotation Marks

Single quotation marks are used in contractions and nested dialogue.

British style often uses single quotation marks instead of double quotation marks. Never mix single and double quotes. Whether you choose to use double or single quotation marks, stick with your choice.

Some authors use single quotation marks for emphasis. However, Chicago advises against this practice and recommends double quotation marks or italics.

Use single quotation marks for dialogue within dialogue. The next level of nested dialogue takes double quotation marks, the next single, etc.

“Bobby said, ‘I hate you because my friend said you’re “the worst.”‘”

When a single quotation mark is next to a double quotation mark, you don’t add space between them. Your interior designer may choose to add a hairline space for readability.

(​CMOS 13.30, 7.58)

When to Add Line Breaks in Dialogue​

When discovering how to write dialogue in a book, we learn that a line break typically signals a new speaker. So, you might write something like this:

“I don’t want to go to the dance,” Jenny said.

“I promise, gremlins won’t attack you this time,” Amy said.

Note that using a line break without a change in speaker is likely to confuse your readers. For example:

“I don’t want to go to the dance,” Jenny said.

“Those gremlins stole my favorite earrings,” she continued.

A reader is likely to assume another character is speaking the second line of dialogue, until they reach “she continued.” We never want to confuse the reader and make them reread sentences or paragraphs. Following these types of conventions ensures the reader stays oriented and concerned only with the story.

However, if a single speaker has long blocks of dialogue, you may choose to break the dialogue into multiple paragraphs. When doing so, omit the closing quotation mark.

“I love giving long speeches,” Jenny said. “The gremlins wouldn’t sit still long enough to listen to them.

“But then I tied one to a chair and gave the entire speech.”

Omitting the closing quotation mark before the line break signals to the reader that the speaker has not changed.

(CMOS 13.39)

Interrupting Dialogue with a Full Sentence

When you break dialogue in the middle of a sentence with dialogue tags, you use commas. An example:

“I don’t know,” she said, wiping her brow, “where that came from.”

However, when you interrupt dialogue with a full sentence, use em dashes.

“I don’t know”—she wiped her brow—”where that came from.”

This is a technique that is typically best used sparingly, as it can be a bit jarring for the reader if overused. Personally, though, I find it extremely effective when used in the right circumstances.

(CMOS 6.87)

How to Format Internal Dialogue

Unspoken discourse (e.g. internal dialogue, thought, imagined dialogue, sign language, etc.) can be enclosed in quotation marks or not. Some authors choose to set this discourse in italics.

As always, consistency is king. Whatever style you choose for unspoken discourse, stick with it.

When selecting a style, think about your work’s POV and the other items you need to style. For example, if your manuscript is written in first person, you may set internal dialogue in roman (unstyled), since there is not likely to be confusion.

On the other hand, let’s say you’re writing in third-person omniscient POV and your manuscript includes a fair number of foreign phrases, which are italicized. In this case, clarity may be improved by enclosing internal dialogue in quotation marks to differentiate between it and the foreign phrases (especially if some of the foreign phrases are used in internal dialogue.)

(CMOS 13.43)

How to Format Dialogue Correctly

With these rules in mind, you’re ready to write dialogue that is strong, clear, and of course, correctly formatted.

Hopefully, after reading this article, you feel confident in your knowledge of how to format dialogue in a narrative. Of course, you will need to make some stylistic choices. Just remember to consider your audience and be consistent.

If you’re exploring how to format dialogue in fiction, refer to the Chicago Manual of Style. Don’t be afraid to look up any rules you don’t remember. That’s the whole purpose of a style guide.

Formatting your dialogue correctly is just one way to become a professional editor’s favorite client. When you’re ready for professional developmental editing or line editing, book your project with our team at Blue Pen.