Character Stuttering/Stammering
From my six years of writing, this has been a topic that I fumble with. Stuttering, which means to talk with continued involuntary repetition of sounds, especially initial consonants, can be written a many number of ways in works of literature, but there are common misconceptions on how to correctly portray a character that speaks with a stutter.
âI-Iâm sorry, this w-wasnât how I wanted to do this,â he stuttered.
Donât do this. Iâve seen this used far too often in stories and general character descriptions and its not the cleanest way to go. Using the dialogue tag stuttered is normally acceptable when the character does not stutter most of the time, can control their stutter, or simply stutter when nervous. By writing out the actual stutter within the sentence and using a dialogue tag, the reader already knows he had been stuttering, so itâs a bit redundant.
The hyphen is the most common way to spot a stutter in a work of literature, but Iâve found it more useful and more pronounced to use the hyphen only once in a sentence. That may not be the case for other writers/readers, however, using a hyphened stutter more than once or even overusing it can be exaggerated and annoying in some ways.
âI-Its j-just that, w-well, I-I,â
Youâd be surprised at how often this occurs. While it is correct, some people do stutter excessively like that in the real world, itâs seen as a nuisance in writing as it takes away from the actual purpose of the dialogue. Writers try extremely hard to capture a stuttering character almost perfectly, but in the process of doing so, they tend to come off a bit over the top more often than not.
To me, the interesting thing about a stutter is that not every word is stumbled over, it varies drastically. While stuttering is a neurological and physiological speech impediment, the severity of the stutter will depend on situation, emotion, and other people involved. A person with a stutter may fumble with one or two words while talking with friends, but placing them before an authoritative figure such as a guardian, police officer, or school principle could increase the amount of stuttering their words take on. Also, be sure to make the character stutter with certain sounds of consonants, not all of them.
Stammering is a bit different than a stutter. With stuttering, a person would tend to stumble on a consonant, or beginning sound of a word whereas stammering is used with full words or phrases. Commas are often used alongside stammers just as the hyphen is used with a stutter. As said above, stuttering is a speech impediment so its not really a thing everyone can experience. Stammering can happen due to stress or excitement or anxiety, so it can occur in anyone.
âIâm sorry, Iâm sorry this wasnât how I wanted to do this,â he said.
Stammering is simple repetition of words or phrases and we often stammer with fully realizing we are doing so.
âI-Iâm sorry, this w-wasnât how I wanted to do this,â he said.
âIâm sorry, this wasnât how I wanted to do this,â he stuttered.
âIâm sorry, Iâm sorry this wasnât how I wanted to do this,â he said.
The severity of stuttering varies widely among individuals. It may also vary in the same individual from day to day and depending on the speaking situation. Saying oneâs name and speaking to authority figures may be particularly difficult. For some individuals, fatigue, stress, and time pressure can increase their tendency to stutter. When stutterers feel compelled to hide their stuttering, it generally becomes worse.
Patterns of stuttering behavior also vary. Some individuals try to avoid stuttering by pausing before words, substituting words, and interjecting phrases such as âyou know,â âwell actually,â âum,â etc., whenever they anticipate a block. As a result, the person may create the false impression of being hesitant, uncertain, or confused. Quoted from the National Stuttering Association
