Story Style Guide
Introduction. This guide provides useful advice to writers on topics such as punctuation, spelling, and dialogue. When a story contains an error, the reader encountering it feels something similar to driving over a speed bump -- a jarring experience. It detracts from the reader's enjoyment of what might otherwise be a great story. Also, if a story contains errors it will most likely be rejected by any quality-conscious story sites.
Contents:
A. Quotations
B. Punctuation
C. Spelling
D. Formatting
E. Story Titles
F. Copyrights
G. Common Mistakes
A. Quotations
1. Enclose a direct quotation in quotation marks.
"You see I did as you asked me to," she said.
2. Use Direct Quotes. Quote what each character says. Avoid indirect quotes unless it is important to summarize what was said.
Indirect: I said that the dinner was nice and that she had good taste.
Direct: "That dinner was so nice," I said, "You have good taste."
3. Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation.
Wrong: "that dinner was so nice," I said, "you have good taste."
4. Do not capitalize the first word of an interrupted quotation unless the second part begins a new sentence.
"She knows as well as I do," he reflected, "the real reason of her cousin's staying away."
5. With a partial quote, capitalize only if the first word is normally capitalized.
John remarked it was "sweet as wine."
6. Indirect quotes do not require quotation marks.
7. Introduce a full-sentence quote with a comma. With a partial quote, punctuate the sentence as if the quote was not there.
She said, "I was hoping to find you here."
Jennifer always said she loved it when "Papa kisses me."
8. Use a comma at the end of a quote that is not the end of a sentence.
Wrong: "I'm sure I will enjoy it." She declared.
Right: "I'm sure I will enjoy it," she declared.
9. Use a period at the end of a quote located at the end of a sentence.
Wrong: She declared, "I'm sure I will enjoy it"
Right: She declared, "I'm sure I will enjoy it."
10. The exclamation point should be placed inside quotation marks when it is part of a quote or inside parentheses when it is part of a parenthetical comment; otherwise, it should be placed outside.
Martha cried, "I can't bear these clamps another second!"
Her master calmly replied, "That is no concern of mine"!
[The exclamation here shows the writer's emotion, not the character's]
Martha (she is such a wimp!) fainted.
11. The question mark should be placed inside quotation marks when it is part of a quote or inside parentheses when it is part of a parenthetical comment; otherwise, it should be placed outside.
"Can't you do this faster?" June cried.
Why did her husband reply, "This is already too fast"?
Wrong: "Can't you do this faster," June cried?
12. Always place a comma or period inside quotes.
"Thanks. I wish it would happen more often," said the visitor in his easy arrogant way.
The visitor said, "Thanks. I wish it would happen more often."
13. Start a new paragraph when a different person speaks.
Wrong: "That dinner was so nice," I said, "You have good taste." "So do you.
Where did you find this wine?" she asked, "It's splendid!" "Well," I replied, "I had a recommendation from a friend who plays wine master, so I can't take credit. But I am feeling particularly smug about inviting you out tonight."
Right:
"That dinner was so nice," I said, "You have good taste."
"So do you. Where did you find this wine?" she asked, "It's splendid!"
"Well, I had a recommendation from a friend who plays wine master, so I can't take credit. But I am feeling particularly smug about inviting you out tonight."
14. Use single quote marks to enclose a quote inside a quote.
"I overheard her say, 'That bitch!'," Anne groaned.
15. If a quote lasts for more than one paragraph, start each paragraph with a quote but omit the enclosing quote until the quote ends.
"I was strapping our capital around me in a memory belt like we always carried it, when Andy pulls a roll of large bills out his pocket and asks me to put 'em with the rest.
"'What's this?' says I.
"'It's Mrs. Trotter's two thousand,' says Andy.
"'How do you come to have it?' I asks.
"'She gave it to me,' says Andy. 'I've been calling on her three evenings a week for more than a month.'
"'Then you are William Wilkinson?' says I.
"'I was,' says Andy."
16. Avoid putting attribution in front of a quote unless a different person has just been quoted. Skip the attribution for a quote that follows an attributed quote, when only two people are speaking.
17. Dialogue that is not said out loud may be handled different ways, either with double quotes, single quotes, or with no quotes. Whichever method the writer chooses must be applied consistently throughout a story. We suggest that single quotes be used.
'That thing is just gorgeous,' Judy thought to herself.
B. Punctuation
1. Period. A period is used to indicate the end of a declarative or imperative sentence.
Archer was distinctly nervous.
2. Exclamation Point. An exclamation point is used to indicate an outcry or an emphatic comment. Use it sparingly and avoid multiple exclamation points, since they diminish its impact.
Wrong: Sue screamed, "Oh my god!!!!!!!!!"
Right: Sue screamed, "Oh my god!"
The exclamation point should be placed inside quotation marks when it is part of a quote or inside parentheses when it is part of a parenthetical comment; otherwise, it should be placed outside.
3. Question Mark. The question mark is placed at the end of a query or statement of editorial doubt.
Who could blame Martha for fainting?
A question mark should be used at the end of an interrogative element that is part of a sentence:
Why me? she wondered.
Like the exclamation point, the question mark should be placed inside quotation marks when it is part of a quote or inside parentheses when it is part of a parenthetical comment; otherwise, it should be placed outside.
4. Ellipsis. An ellipsis (three dots) denotes missing information or faltering speech. A dash should be used instead of an ellipsis to denote stuttering. Unless the ellipsis is at the beginning or end of a sentence, place a space at the end of it. Do not use two dots or more than three dots unless adding a period to it at the end of a direct quotation. Do not overuse the ellipsis -- it is not a substitute for other punctuation.
To quote the president, "...I did not have sex with that woman..."
"That ray is... so painful...," grimaced Captain Kirk.
Captain Kirk groaned, "That ray is... so painful...."
Wrong: "Th... th... th... that's all folks!"
Wrong: "That ray is..so painful.........."
5. Comma. The comma indicates an interruption in continuity of thought or sentence structure. Use it to clarify the meaning of a sentence.
Wrong: "With Susan regurgitating the cat her husband and her daughter looked alarmed.
Right: With Susan regurgitating, the cat, her husband, and her daughter looked alarmed.
6. Semicolon. The semicolon is used to represent a stronger break in continuity than that provided by a comma. It is used:
(1) To link statements that are closely associated or that complement or parallel each other.
Margaret was poor; and yet she was happy.
(2) To separate the two independent clauses of a compound sentence in the absence of a coordinating conjunction:
Judy went to the party at 9:00; she left at 9:15.
(3) To mark a stronger division in a sentence that is already punctuated by commas.
Joe was tapping his fingers, looking bored; then he noticed Sally enter the room.
7. Colon. The colon marks a discontinuity greater than that of a semicolon but less than that of a period. It is used:
(1) To introduce a list.
Orwell's rules for writing English: (1) never use a figure of speech you are accustomed to seeing in print, (2) never use a long word when a short word will do, (3) if you can cut a word out, do so, (4) never use the passive voice when you can use active, (5) never use jargon if you can use an everyday English equivalent, and (6) break any of these rules rather than say anything outright barbarous.
(2) To introduce quoted material.
The Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language explains about the colon: "It has an anticipatory effect, leading from what precedes to what follows."
(3) To lead from one clause to another.
Let me advise the reader: do not try this stuff at home.
(4) To highlight a contrast.
He was satisfied: she was not.
(5) To replace a conjunction (and, or, but) to produce a staccato or other effect.
He woke up: he lit a cigarette: he dozed off with the cigarette still in his fingers.
8. Dash. Two dashes indicate pauses and asides. They are used:
(1) To denote a sudden break in thought.
Mary -- she had been waiting anxiously by the phone -- was in no mood for polite conversation with her sister.
(2) To indicate a pause for effect.
John hoped to finally meet Julia -- the woman of his dreams.
(3) To add an afterthought.
Her face turned red -- a very bright red.
(4) To emphasize material in a sentence.
Jerry's mother -- an attractive, energetic woman -- was popular among his friends.
In Internet writing the convention is to use two dashes that are preceded and followed by a space. The spaces are needed for word wrapping in HTML files.
9. Hyphen. There are two hyphens, hard and soft. The hard hyphen, or link hyphen, links two or more words to form a compound word or denotes stuttering. The soft hyphen is used in print to divide a word at the end of a line. Never leave soft hyphens in a story for the Internet since browsers automatically format a document and any soft hyphens you have in a document will probably be misplaced.
"Th-th-th-that's all folks!"
Wrong: I knew this was the start of something very special, an adven- ture that would not soon be forgotten.
10. Parenthesis. Parentheses may be used to set off explanatory or digressive elements from a sentence. Information in parentheses is not needed to understand the sentence. In contrast to dashes, parentheses de-emphasize the enclosed material, and they tend to distract the reader more than other punctuation. Use them judiciously and place them at the end of a sentence or phrase when possible.
The most difficult tasks lay ahead of her (climbing, diving off a cliff, swimming against a strong current).
11. Bracket. Brackets may be used to enclose editorial comments.
Judy slowly and deliberately tightened the noose around her own throat [don't try this at home, kids].
12. Slash. Slashes indicate options or indented lines of poetry.
Tonda seemed drunk/drugged as she stumbled backwards.
There once was an elderly Finn/Who wooed a young lady named Quinn...
13. Apostrophe. Add 's to form the possessive of a singular noun. Also, add 's to form the possessive of a plural noun or indefinite pronoun provided it does not end in s or with an s or z sound.
Chris's husband noted that several women's articles of clothes were strewn over Margeux's floor, indicting someone's lack of tidiness.
Add ' to form the possessive of a plural noun or indefinite pronoun provided it ends in s or with an s or z sound. Also, as an exception to the first rule, add ' to form the possessive of these two singular names: Jesus and Moses.
The three cats' toys where scattered across the floor.
To form the the possessive of compound words, add 's to the last word only.
My brother-in-law's tool chest contained the most complete collection of screwdrivers in the known universe.
Use an apostrophe to indicate contractions or omitted letters. Make sure the apostrophe appears in place of the missing letter(s).
That doesn't sound right to me. It just isn't like 'em to do that kind of thing.
Wrong: That does'nt sound right to me. [No letters are missing between the n and the t]
Wrong: Your gonna hate this.
Do not use an apostrophe with a possessive pronoun.
Wrong: Our's is definitely the worst of the batch.
Wrong: It's weakness is well known.
Do not use an apostrophe with plurals except for abbreviations containing periods, lowercase letters used as nouns, or other places to prevent confusion.
The two CPAs glanced up from their ledgers and their eyes met; it was instant love.
The two Ph.D.'s argued over the proper use of apostrophes.
Sally got straight As, including an A in Speech, even though she had trouble pronouncing her r's.
In a list of names, make the last name possessive if there is joint possession or each name possessive if there is individual ownership.
Mike and Tonda's house was an impressive Victorian mansion, and their daughter Julia loved it immediately. They discovered it was in a bad neighborhood, however, when Tonda's and Julia's cars were vandalized.
14. Asterisk. The two main uses of asterisks in stories are (1) to mark a major break in the story using perhaps 5 asterisks centered on a separate line and (2) to replace letters in words that are too f*cking harsh for your audience.
15. Underscore. Don't use it, except when it is part of an email address.
16. Combining punctuation marks. Don't put two marks side-by-side except with an ellipsis.
"I can't... do that...!" she gasped.
Wrong: "Why are you doing that!?" she screamed.
C. Spelling
1. Capitalization. Capitalize the first word in a sentence and proper names. Do not capitalize parenthetical material either within (following this example) or at the end of a sentence, even if the material forms a complete sentence (hey, this forms a complete sentence, but the first word is not capitalized). (However, do capitalize material in parenthesis if it is treated as a separate sentence.)
For stories written in the first person by a submissive, it is customary for names associated with the submissive to be lower case and names associated with their master to be upper case. That is perfectly all right, and is customary in stories for the bondage, discipline, sadism, and masochism (BDSM) community.
i waited expectantly for the next kiss from Her whip.
Do not capitalize entire words, ever. Some writers feel it necessary to capitalize words to indicate SHOUTING or EMPHASIS. Let the structure and content of your story indicate to the reader which words are being shouted or otherwise deserve emphasis.
2. Numbers. Spell out small numbers and in general avoid using numbers. You are writing a story, not a statistical report.
Wrong: At age 17, the youngest of 4 sisters, Mary was only 5'2" tall and weighed 95 lbs, but her measurements were 36, 24, 36.
Right: At age seventeen, the youngest of four sisters, Mary was short and petite, but had a spectacular figure.
3. Abbreviations. Avoid them. The reader must expand your abbreviations into words. You will do the reader a favor by spelling everything out.
Wrong: For two yrs. at the univ. I weighed only 145 lbs.
Right: For two years at the university I weighed only 145 pounds.
4. Deviant Spelling. You may take liberties with spelling and grammar in dialogue but please use correct spelling and grammar everywhere else in a story. Do not use informal English such as Internetspeak in the story narrative, like "Sheila axed only 4 pple 4 her party cuz she wanted 2 keep it intimate." Spare us that.
The written English language is often inadequate for representing spoken English. People speak using words that are in no dictionary and may use dialects the writer wishes to represent. Deviant spelling and descriptive attribution are two devices used to overcome language limitations.
"I wanna kiss ya, ya big monkeyjurgle," Nancy bubbled, as Mike backed away.
"Wassa matta w' you?" Bobby slurred, as he stumbled forward.
D. Formatting
1. Paragraphs. Separate each paragraph by a blank line.
2. Bold. Never use bold type. Readers find it distracting.
3. Italics. Use italics only when providing the title of a work such as a story title. The writer may instead place the title in quotes, so italics are never really needed. Do not use italics for emphasis. The skilled writer obtains that effect structurally:
He woke up suddenly, and realized that the person in bed next to him was not his wife but his own mother.
Do not italicize the phrase his own mother; it is clear from the structure of the sentence that those words should be emphasized when read.
4. Fonts. Do not use different font sizes. It is distracting.
E. Story Titles
1. Capitalization. Capitalize all words in the story title except articles (the, a, an), conjunctions (and, or, nor, but), and prepositions (e.g., for, in, with), regardless of word length. Always capitalize the first and last words of a title.
For hyphenated compounds in a title always capitalize the first word and capitalize the second word if it is a noun or adjective or if it has equal force with the first word.
Motorcycle-Loving Momma
Do not capitalize the second word if it modifies the first word or both elements constitute a single word.
Jumbo-sized Jobbers
2. Spelling. Spell out numbers and change "&" to "and." Actually you should do that everywhere, not just in titles.
F. Copyrights
1. Copyright Notice. The author of a story owns it. This gives the author certain rights: the author can decide where and under what circumstances his or her story will be published. Typically, an author will attach a copyright notice to the beginning of a story file, stating how the story may be used. The notice might state, for example, whether the story may be copied freely, whether the story may be posted to a pay site, and whether it may be altered.
Wrong: Many of my stories are copyrighted and may not be posted anywhere else without my express permission.
Right: This story is copyrighted and may not be posted anywhere without my express permission.
2. Using Other People's Work. Some stories are based on themes from other stories or may borrow heavily from other stories or accounts. In those situations it is appropriate to acknowledge the original author.
If you revise a story, leave the original author's name as the story author and show your name as the one revising it.
Pregnant with Monkeys by King Kong (Rev) Chimp Chump
If someone tells you the story and you are the ghost writer who makes the story readable and entertaining, list the story-teller as the author and give yourself "as told to" credits.
My Gorilla Lover by Bo Bo the Sign Language Gorilla as told to Sally
G. Common Mistakes
1. Similar-sounding Words and Phrases. Many people have trouble deciding which of two or more similar sounding words to use.
Contractions and Possessives. One common problem group is there/their/they're and there's/theirs. Some even write theirs' instead of there's. This has a couple of problems: (1) Don't add an apostrophe to theirs since that word already shows possession and (2) There's is a contraction, which expands to There is -- if you can't expand a contraction, you are using the wrong word. For example, "Theirs several problems here" should expand to "There are several problems here" but it can't. So, you can tell that theirs is the wrong word to use.
To, Too, and Two. Most know that two is a number but many mix up to and too. You can substitute also or excessively for too as in "I wanted to go too" (meaning I wanted to go also") and "That is too expensive" (meaning "That is excessively expensive"). If you can substitute one of those words, use too. For example, "She was hungry to" would be equivalent to "She was hungry also," so it should be written "She was hungry too".
2. A Versus An. Use an before a word that starts with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) sound and a otherwise.
Wrong: An black van passed a orange car.
Right: A black van passed an orange car.
3. Misspelled Words - The Dirty Dozen. You'd think that in the age of spell-checkers built into word processors it would be unnecessary to provide this list, but -- these appear very often in stories people write, so it is worth looking at the dozen words that are frequently misspelt. Um, I mean misspelled.
Accidently. This is the way most seem to pronounce it but it is spelled "accidentally."
Alot. We see this a lot.
Amature. Many amateur writers spell it this way.
Embarass. There are supposed to be two Rs in "embarrass."
Masterbate. I never saw it spelled like this until I looked in Internet chat rooms. This is the way most on the Internet seem to spell it but it should be "masturbate."
Occured. Nope. Should be "occurred."
Rythm. Who ever heard of an H following an R? Well, it happens in "rhythm."
Seperate. The key to understanding the correct spelling of this is it contains "pare" which means to cut in two, so it should be spelled "separate."
Shepard. This is the way most on the Internet spell it but think of the breed of dog that herds sheep -- the German Shepherd.
Suprise. This spelling is a surprise to me since you don't even pronounce it this way -- at least I don't.
Tounge. Actually, this tends to be spelled every way except "tongue."
Wierd. An I before E except after C? Not when spelling gets weird.