Writing Stack Exchange
Writing Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [language]

Incorporating foreign languages, slang, dialect, and so on into a work.

Questions about using words from a language other than the main language of a work. Also about slang, vernacular, dialect, constructed languages, developing languages over the course of a story, and writing in your second/third etc. language.

256 questions
94
votes
9 answers

Using real words from a foreign culture feels like 'Calling a rabbit a "smeerp"'

I'm working on a novel, that's set in pre-Islamic Persia, in the same general way that The Lord of the Rings is set in Britain. (Meaning, it's set in a world all its own, but there's this source of inspiration.) Here's my conundrum: the land is…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
  • 58,107
  • 12
  • 176
  • 303
35
votes
10 answers

My story is written in English, but is set in my home country. What language should I use for the dialogue?

I'm an amateur writer from the Philippines. I am writing a novelette for an international writing contest. My story is written in English, but is set here, in my country, with my POV character being a full blood Filipino. My question is, is it…
Jan Derick Malelang
  • 351
  • 1
  • 3
  • 4
33
votes
10 answers

How to write dialogue for someone who is intelligent but barely speaks the language?

I have a character who is a refugee from another country. She comes to the protagonist, and they have a couple of scenes together, viewed from the protagonist. I read about how important it is to make dialogue convey information about the character,…
KeizerHarm
  • 703
  • 1
  • 6
  • 14
32
votes
11 answers

Using fake swear words without them seeming out of place to the reader

This is not a question about slang, but about swearing and word creation. I have a character who uses swear words, and this is part of his voice. I do not use real swear words. I want the sense of those words in the story. But not the words. Other…
SFWriter
  • 23,852
  • 3
  • 48
  • 120
29
votes
8 answers

Is it ok to use "aluminium" in an otherwise American English text?

I am not an American English native (I'm actually a German native speaker) but, when I write, I use the American style of words predominantly. However, I always use aluminium instead of aluminum, following the nomenclature that is used by all the…
Trish
  • 1,078
  • 11
  • 16
29
votes
13 answers

Could I reach the level of good writing style as non-native language speaker?

I currently write in Russian, but I think of switching to English to gain more audience and to play with both languages and linguistics. So could I ever reach the level of native English writers and maybe even gain some honor as a good one? I know…
Dan Ganiev
  • 1,981
  • 15
  • 26
28
votes
10 answers

Using colloquialisms the reader may not be familiar with

I'm from Ireland, most of my stories take place in Ireland, and many of my characters will speak with Irish accents and/or dialects to varying degrees. For the most part I think this is OK, and can often be endearing to non-Irish readers. However I…
sudowoodo
  • 1,954
  • 1
  • 14
  • 31
26
votes
11 answers

What's the best way to show a foreign language in a manuscript?

What's the best way to show a character speaking a foreign language in a fiction manuscript? Should the foreign words be italicized and include a translation? Should it just be included in the sentence and try and make sure the reader can guess at…
Ralph Gallagher
  • 8,736
  • 5
  • 40
  • 61
25
votes
9 answers

A torrent of foreign terms

I am writing a short story, about a particular field with multiple specific terms, none of which are in English. (Specifically, I'm writing about bullfighting, but the question could apply to other fields.) My POV character lives that particular…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
  • 58,107
  • 12
  • 176
  • 303
24
votes
10 answers

What can I do to make my writing fit the 1950s?

I'm working on a project (for a game) that needs to have a strongly 1950s feel. I, however, was born in the 1980s, so my writing has plenty of things that would sound out of place in the 1950s. For example, I used the work "backpack" in a piece set…
Joe
  • 351
  • 1
  • 2
  • 7
23
votes
2 answers

How should I quote American English speakers in a British English essay?

I am working on a formal essay where I have to quote a few American English speakers, but my essay is written in British English. Should I change terms like color to colour?
gen
  • 349
  • 2
  • 4
22
votes
7 answers

How does one include sign language in a dialogue?

If one character is using sign language and lip reading while the other is speaking normally, how do you represent the lines of the former? Quotations with "he signed" attribution or italics? E.g. "When did you first feel the pain?" asked the…
HNL
  • 837
  • 1
  • 7
  • 12
22
votes
5 answers

How to write cleanly even if my character uses expletive language?

I'm writing a story that I'd like younger readers to pick up. I and they know and understand that some situations are far better expressed with one f-word than a thousand milder ones. I'm keeping my narrative clean, but when I write the dialogue, I…
iamtowrite
  • 1,919
  • 12
  • 35
20
votes
9 answers

Can non-English-speaking characters use wordplay specific to English?

Would it be jarring if in an original (non-translated) story, the characters, who don't speak English in-universe, use "untranslatable" wordplay/puns that are specific to English? By "untranslatable" I mean that if a pun is translated literally into…
Friendly Neighborhood Demon
  • 1,038
  • 6
  • 8
20
votes
7 answers

Pretty flowers with clunky Latin names

I am writing a fantasy novel set in the Middle East. For multiple reasons related to both plot and atmosphere, I'm using flowers and flowering trees a lot in both descriptions and dialogue. Trouble is, many plants that are very common in the Middle…
Galastel supports GoFundMonica
  • 58,107
  • 12
  • 176
  • 303
1
2 3
…
17 18