statement and a question in the same sentence?

[Bajungadustin]

Opening scene. Monologue narration for backstory.

in this opening narration the main character is giving you backstory. He is talking to the reader (or persons reading the message)

I want it to say,

I wish I could tell you we made the right decision. You and I both know that's not the case, but why am I telling you this? You were there, and this was your fault too.

the bold section is a statement and a question, but I am not sure how to punctuate it to make is sound just like that. The "but" needs to be in there but I feel conflicted about having the But be at the beginning of the sentence if I was to start a new sentence. I am also conflicted about having a statement and a question in the same sentence.

Any help would be grand.

 

[ByTXP]

Starting a sentence with "But" isn't really a problem, especially in dialogue. But (see?) I think you could sidestep the problem completely by tweaking the line:

I wish I could tell you we made the right decision. But we both know that's not the case, don't we? You were there, and this was your fault, too.

It gets across the same idea with a less awkward construction.

 

[Bajungadustin]

the sentence wording currently is pretty set. But ( ) if starting the sentence with but is fine in dialogue I will just do that. Thank you.

 

[Curlz]

Statement and question together are okay in the same sentence, yours is punctuated alright. Starting a sentence with "but" is okay, too.

 

[BethS]

I keep wanting to change "but" to "so." To me, "but" doesn't really fit what the character seems to be trying to say.

It is otherwise fine.

 

[starsknight]

OP: Great question!

Since this is basically the narrator interrupting himself with a new thought, I'd suggest using an em dash. That gives you a little more of a break than a comma, and em dashes are conventionally used for interruptions.

I wish I could tell you we made the right decision. You and I both know that's not the case--but why am I telling you this? You were there, and this was your fault too.

There's nothing wrong with beginning a sentence with a conjunction, so you could also go that way. You'll get a slightly different feel: that of the narrator completing one thought before moving on to the next. Personally, I like the em dash option, but which is better depends entirely on the way you want it to read.