post #539888 post #1367432 post #672692

Dialogue is a form of verbal communication presented through text consisting of words perceived to be spoken aloud. Such words are generally, but not always, found in speech bubbles.

What counts as dialogue?

• Content perceived to be spoken out loud. It does not have to be a conversation, nor does it need to be targeted at anyone.
• Content that is recorded, or transmitted (broadcasts, phone calls, etc). Try to make sure that the text is perceived to be audible, instead of a text message.
• Content that is from offscreen, or unseen sources.

What content is applicable?

• Most words
• Fictional, constructed, and unknown languages may be assumed to be dialogue.
• Profanity (any context)
• Proper nouns (names of characters, locations, species etc.)
• Abbreviations ("BTW", "WTH", "BRB"), and simplified speech (shortened words)
• Muffled, or garbled speech that appears inspired by actual words.

Communication vs Conversation vs Dialogue

The intent of communication is to share ideas through a language medium. A conversation is the sharing of ideas between two, or more subjects. Dialogue that is perceived as communicating an idea can be thought of as conversational dialogue.

Not all forms of communication are considered dialogue by our tagging definition.

What should not be treated as dialogue?

Communication through one's thoughts is not considered dialogue, and should be tagged as inner monologue instead.

• Most forms of vocalization should not be treated as dialogue. Consider whether the character is producing words, or sounds, and tag accordingly.
• The most common forms of vocalization include moans, grunts, and laughter.
• Animal noises are considered vocalizations too.
• Generic screaming ("Aaaaaaaaahhh")
• Certain interjections ("Ack", "Eek", "Eep", "Eww", "Gah", "Ugh")
• Sound effects inside of a speech bubble.
• Standalone punctuation (!, ?, ...)
• Muffled, or garbled speech that does not appear inspired by actual words. ("Hmph", "Mmph")
• Whistling, or humming

Grey areas

Most grey areas involves content that is more expressive in nature. Some can be thought of as a valid form of communication

• Emojis and emoticons
• Pictographics - The use of symbols, or images to convey ideas instead of words.
• Sound effects, or vocalizations that represent socializing, or speaking such as "Chatter", "Blah blah blah", "Loud talking", "Whisper".
• Voice acting, where words are spoken through sound instead of text. Many images convey dialogue in this way, and subtitles are optional.

See also

• tag_group:narrative_elements

• moan
• text
• dialogue
• inner_monologue
• narration
• pictographics
• thought_bubble