Italic usage

cardanise

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I'm at a point in my novel where the main character is eavesdropping an event happen in real time through a fantasy portal screen. How would I best format the scene so that readers don't get confused? Such as have what the characters say through the portal be in italics?

I also have several points where the main character texts/calls another character, should that be in italics as well?

And I have bilingual speakers within the novel, should what those characters say in a foreign language come with italics? (Note: the main character doesn't speak the language.)

I'm looking for conventional means of formatting, or would it be better to remain consistent throughout the novel?

Thank you!
 

Cindyt

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I'm at a point in my novel where the main character is eavesdropping an event happen in real time through a fantasy portal screen. How would I best format the scene so that readers don't get confused? Such as have what the characters say through the portal be in italics? Welp, I don't italicize eavesdropping. It might be different via a fantasy portal screen, but IMO, it wouldn't be any different than standing outside a library door.

I also have several points where the main character texts/calls another character, should that be in italics as well? I don't italicize phone calls. I just have the phone ring and then they hang up after the conversation. I would likely formate a text the way it actually appears on a phone.

And I have bilingual speakers within the novel, should what those characters say in a foreign language come with italics? (Note: the main character doesn't speak the language.)

I'm looking for conventional means of formatting, or would it be better to remain consistent throughout the novel?

Thank you!

Here's a link about foreign language use.https://www.dailywritingtips.com/italicizing-foreign-words/

The only time I ever use italics is to accent a word, foreign words, flashbacks, and soliloquy.
 

benbenberi

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For your eavesdropping and phone scenes, you can use italics. Or you can not. Different writers do it different ways, and some publishers have house rules that supersede your preference. So just pick one, keep an eye on clarity, and be consistent.

For the foreign languages... you say the MC doesn't speak the language, but is the MC your POV in the scene? If so, they don't speak the language... it would all just be a jumble of foreign language sounds to them, not comprehensible words/sentences. Try it for yourself -- turn on a foreign language channel and see how well it resolves into something that could be transcribed as speech. With some languages it would be a challenge for a non-speaker to even pick out individual names in the stream of gibberish. But the emotional content often comes across clearly.

If it's important that the actual content of the foreign language dialog be available to the reader, you'll have to manage the POV so it's either someone who speaks the language or an omniscient narrator who Knows All. And since it's likely that the reader doesn't speak the same foreign language as the characters (whatever language that may be), think carefully before you include extended dialog in that language. If characters are going to be having a conversation in, say, Spanish, you can just introduce it with a few words or phrases in Spanish for flavor & indicate they're continuing in that language while writing it in English. Or just say, "they said in Spanish" and continue from there.

Italics for foreign language? As a general rule, probably not in most cases. But as usual, the main rule is to be consistent.
 

indianroads

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IMO italics draw attention to themselves, and are best used for emphasis. "That woman is really tall."

If overused, the emphasis is lost - and they can be an unwanted distraction in your writing.

I would write an overheard conversations as plain dialogue - something your POV character hears but doesn't contribute to.
 

MythMonger

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I try to use italics in only one way. Frex, either for emphasis or for thoughts. Not both.

I also try to avoid huge blocks of italicized text as it's difficult to read.
 

Nerdilydone

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I recommend not using italics in any major way (it works for character thoughts, though), as it's annoying to read for extended periods. Honestly, if you just have a clear transition from the MC to the portal dialogue, and a clear transition out of it, you're good. Give maybe about a paragraph of dedicated writing to specifically the character sitting down and turning on the magic machine (or whatever means she uses to look through the portal), and the reader will get it.

As for text messages, you can use a different font. Something more machine-looking. Or you can increase the margins of the page for that segment, so that the text is less wide. Or both.
 

Sonya Heaney

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I use italics for emphasis. And I do use them for foreign languages (which I'm pretty sure is part of my publisher's house style anyway).

I'd write it how you like to write it. Every publisher does things differently.

One warning: I once read a book where the two main characters had conversations via telepathy that went on for five or more pages - all in italics. It drove me so crazy I stopped reading the book.