Alright, this chapter isn't really going to talk about anything plot wise, but I still think it's important to discuss formatting and basic grammar. English is not my first language, so I won't go into grammar too much since I'm sure I make plenty of mistakes in my own writing.
FORMATTING
I find that that chapters look so much more appearing when I do these three things:
1. Use gifs
2. Use dividers
3. Correct paragraphs
Finding gifs for your books is super easy, just go in Pinterest, Google or tumblr and you're bound to find plenty
Same as dividers, there are plenty of pages on the internet that provide you with dividers you can use freely
Those two things are basically just for the aesthetic, but making your paragraphs look could can be super tricky. Especially for those who write on their phone. If you're one of those people, please remember you have to press the enter button twice to make a proper paragraph. Otherwise it looks like this:
The wrong way
*insert sentences*
*insert more sentences*
*even more sentences*
The correct way
*insert sentences*
*insert more sentences*
*even more sentences*
See the difference? It's so much more easier to read when used in actual chapters. If you only press enter once, you'll be left with one giant block of text that most people find tedious and annoying to read. Usually if I find this in a book, I click off of it because it is difficult to keep track of everything.
Another thing you should remember is that your paragraphs shouldn't be too long or else you'll end up with the same problems. Usually a paragraph should be around 6-8 sentences long, though it can always vary depending on what the paragraph is used for. Obviously if you're describing something or your character is having an inner monologue it may be 10-12 sentences long while paragraphs with dialogue may be only around 2-4. What is a bit too much is having 20+ sentences in one paragraph. There are a few things that would call for a new paragraph:
New person speaks
The subject changes
The time changes
The setting changes
ESPECIALLY WHEN A NEW PERSON SPEAKS. I have seen so many books where the characters dialogue looks like this:
"Greetings fellow traveler," the man said. There was a dagger or something at his side. I stepped back. "Hello to you too, sir," I answered. The man nodded at me and continued on his way.
When it should look like this:
"Greetings fellow traveler," the man said. There was a dagger or something at his side. I stepped back.
"Hello to you too sir," I answered. The man nodded at me and continued on his way.
This is especially important if there are more than two people in a conversation. It can be difficult to keep up with. So please remember to do it correctly.
GRAMMAR
A lot of people struggle with punctuation, especially those who do not speak English as their first language. My first language has different rules when it comes to commas in punctuation, so I won't be able to help much with that unless it's in terms of dialogue. When to you use a comma and when a full stop (period)? When do I use a hyphen, when an en-dash and when an em-dash? Exclamation mark? Question mark)?
In terms of dialogue, you would use a comma when describing how the person speaks. This is called a dialogue tag:
"Greetings," she said.
"It is a beautiful day," she noted.
But you would use a full stop when the dialogue is followed by an action.
"Greetings." He waved at her.
"It is a beautiful day." She turned her head to look at him.
Notice that when I use a comma, the word behind it isn't capitalized, but when I use a full stop, the next word is capitalized.
While we're discussing dialogue, please remember to but quotation marks! These are super important, most readers won't even realize your character is speaking if you don't use them!
Now, when do we use a full stop in normal sentences? Well obviously when the sentence ends, but a sentence can be ended with an exclamation mark or a question mark as well. A full stop would be used if the sentence is neutral. By that I mean it doesn't show surprise or it isn't asking something. In this paragraph, I used a full stop in every sentence except for one. This is because the sentences are neutral in meaning. But if I were to do this:
In this paragraph, I used a full stop in every sentence except for one!
It would make you have a sense of excitement or surprise. It's an exclamation, that's why it's called an exclamation mark.
Another time to use exclamation marks is when the sentence is a command. This is used mainly in dialogue as well.
"Go!" he commanded.
"Run!" he shouted.
Notice that the first word after is not capitalized. It is the same with a question mark:
"Where were you?" he asked.
"How are you?" he inquired.
Now comes the punctuation that is used by more advanced writers. The hyphen, en-dash and em-dash. You will see these often in published books and even a lot of books on wattpad as well. I've learned to use them as well and I have to say I think it makes my writing not only look but feel better when reading it back.
A hyphen (-) is used when connecting two or more words together: a five-year-old
A en-dash is used when symbolizing an interval: 2015–2017, 5pm–6pm
And an em-dash is used to connect two sentences or to add an input: Bob was fired — exhausted, really — but knew he could not rest.
You can use an en-dash for the same thing as an em-dash, I've seen people use both: Bon was tired – exhausted, really – but knew he could not rest.
Anyways, I think those are the main things I wanted to address. If there is any topic you'd like for me to talk about, please comment it because I'm running out of ideas most days!
