Morpherine nation.....how we feeling about episode 5....?
SPOILERS FOR X MEN '97 SEASON 2 EP 5
So far, this episode is in my top 3 favorite episode for the entire show, number one being "Rise of Apocalypse- Part 2". This episode shows just how much Morph was willing to go for Wolverine, to the point that this man's ex girlfriend AND his rival were both like "you are so whipped for this man right now!"
But I think it also shows a side to Wolverine that is now being brought up in discussions. Wolverine fully lead his oldest enemy, long lost ex girlfriend, and his old teammates to essentially get his adamantium back, under the guide of exposing more stuff with Dr. Cornelius....that was until they found the brood stuff.
And it's the FACT that Wolverine was originally planning to take Morph with him to basically get his adamantium back and possibly explain the actual truth here. But then plot had to happen and they got split up with Morph getting that reality check from Lady Deathstrike.
AND OHHHHH THAT FINAL BATTLE
You're telling me that Morph, the mutant that you fought tooth and nail for to find out if they were alive, the mutant that you went to the ends of the earth for to bring them back home, the mutant who you was the only one to make you laugh, the MUTANT YOU FOUGHT SO HARD FOR....was not the one to break you out of the mind thing but Jean....a married woman you know you can't have....😐 What are we doing here...? Seriously....can I not have a break. First doomed Cherik, now this???
On the downside, Morph and Logan are doomed.
On the plus side, Sabertooth x Morph is making a surprise appearance on my ao3 search
So after freaking about the the casting of Avengers: Doomsday (X-MEN FANS REJOICE!!), I took time to draw my second favorite shape shifter (Morph my beloved). I actually did a lot of redesigns of X-Men women and Mystique is one of my favorites....prolly cuz I really didn't change a lot
why must the guard dog characters unquestioning devotion to their master be born from trust or some shit cant they be manipulated into it. raised into it. brainwashed even
Here's an updated version of my old post! As I've grown as a writer, I realized the wording and the tips of my old post weren't as good as they could be, so I decided to completely revamp it!
Dialogue is incredibly tricky, for both beginners and experienced writers alike. It can be too overworked, as in cluttered with speech tags and descriptions, or too bare-bones, struggling to have any liveliness.
The main reason dialogue is so difficult is because of the complexity of human communication. It's a paired dance between nonverbal and verbal communication, and how people's demeanor may or may not embody what's coming out of their mouth. Without visuals or audio at your disposal to act as an aid for the reader, writing a good, realistic conversation can be hard to get right.
Here are some tips and tricks for those who've been struggling with their dialogue!
1. Punctuate it Right
No matter how good your writing is, readers will have a tough time loving it if it's improperly punctuated. Many of us have come across fanfictions where it is near-impossible to read the dialogue, or to distinguish between the people who are speaking. But knowing all the ways not to punctuate dialogue doesn't make it easy to figure out how to do it correctly.
Here's some sample dialogue to see correct punctuation in action.
"I am speaking," Character A says with a wave.
"I am replying," answers Character B, "but I also have something to say after my speech tag."
"You do not have to put a comma at the end of your sentence if there's no speech tag." Character A winks. "If you want to, it's also okay to put a period after the interrupting phrase instead of a comma, if the next line of dialogue is a new sentence."
"There's also an exception for exclamation points!" Character B announces. "You don't need a comma after exclamation points."
Here are some more specified rules:
1. Please use quotation marks (" ") to show when someone is speaking
'This is incorrect punctuation' and -so is this- and <so is this>
2. Please don't overuse caps to show anger or shouting. Using it for emphasis during climactic moments can be great, but using too much comes across as childish.
Instead of doing this, you can put an exclamation point at the end of the sentence and strong speech tags like 'roared' or 'bellowed' or 'screeched.' Although caps may portray anger in a more literal sense, it isn't very professional if you use a lot of it.
3. You can put a period or a comma after an interruption sentence, but make sure to stay consistent.
"This is correct," she says, "It is a good way to punctuate."
"This is also correct," she says. "However, you need to stay consistent and not switch around."
"This does not apply," she says, "when the second line of dialogue is a continuation of the first and not its own sentence."
4. Start a new paragraph whenever the speaker changes
"This is very important for readers' comprehension," he says.
"If it's all one big block, how will they now which one of us is talking?" she adds.
"This isn't right," he says. "It's very confusing," she agrees.
5. If you have a very long monologue that's becoming one big block of text, you can break it up with a paragraph break. Here's how:
"I'm going to be talking for a very long time. You can skip this if you want. Really the most important part is at the end of this paragraph. You should probably skip to that. These words are just to take up space. You're still here? Aww, thank you for listening to me, but this is just an example. Normally this paragraph would be a lot longer, but I'm keeping it short so that I don't take up that much room.
"See what I did there? I didn't use a quotation mark at the end of the first paragraph, but began the second paragraph with a quotation. That way, you don't think the person has stopped speaking."
2. Try Cutting Down Your Speech Tags if Your Dialogue Feels Cluttered or Stilted
I know it’s a groaner; seemingly every writing advice blog says this. Don’t worry, I get it.
If you don’t know what a speech tag is, it’s a verb (usually paired with a name or pronoun) after a line of dialogue to describe how a character is saying that certain line of dialogue.
(Example: “I don’t want to go,” she argued.)
You can find my master list of speech tags here.
Speech tags can be an incredible resource, and can really help kick your dialogue up to the next level, but if they're overused, they can get in the way.
If your dialogue is coming off very stilted and unnatural, then too many speech tags might be the cause.
Look through your work, considering each case on an individual basis, and try eliminating unnecessary speech tags depending on what you think best fits your story.
For example:
“Shut up!” she shouted.
This isn’t necessarily a bad example, not by a long shot. But if you’re having trouble with rhythm in this particular section of your story, maybe consider taking out the ‘she shouted’ part. With the exclamation point, we can assume she shouted the line.
Also, dialogue between two people can have less speech tags, too.
For example:
“Hey, what’s up?” she greeted. “How was school?”
“Fine,” he snapped.
"Doesn't sound fine," she pointed out.
"Whatever," he scoffed.
Now, let's see how this exchange sounds without some of the speech tags making it cluttered.
"Hey, what's up?" she greeted. "How was school?"
"Fine," he snapped.
"Doesn't sound fine."
"Whatever."
As you can see, I kept the two first speech tags to make sure the readers know who is speaking (as well as the tone of the conversation), which is why it's important to not go around hacking away speech tags without considering the context.
But the speech tags I did cut out made the dialogue flow a whole lot easier! Sometimes you have to sacrifice the specificness of your character's delivery of the line in favor of smooth, rhythmic flow of speech.
3. Add Some Choreography or Give Your Characters Props to Spice Things Up
Choreography doesn't mean a full dance number, but rather actions that can go along with your dialogue. This tip is for writers who may be struggling to make their dialogue lively or exciting.
Actions and choreography can also substitute in for speech tags.
Instead of:
"What the hell were you thinking?!" he roared.
You could try:
"What the hell were you thinking?!" He slammed his fist on the table, his eyes blazing.
In both instances, you can tell the character is angry, only the second one is a more 'show, not tell' approach to things.
The scene can also benefit from a "situation," such as people eating their food or washing the dishes, and the dialogue in turn would then be interrupted by describing people performing actions associated with that "situation," such as taking bites or sipping drinks.
Things you can describe while someone is speaking:
Mouth movement (smiling, scowling, lips twitching)
Eye movement (Glaring, rolling, fluttering, darting around)
Jaw twitching
Fidgeting
Sweating
Shifting weight
Moving around the scene
Breathing (sighting, letting out a heavy breath, panting, breath hitching)
Using props during the activities that are going on (cutting up vegetables, chewing, drinking, etc.)
And more!
Make sure not to overuse these descriptions, though, because like with speech tags, they do have the potential to clutter up your dialogue!
Try to intersperse them whenever you feel like your dialogue needs a bit more action going on, or feels too sparse and fast-paced.
4. Learn From the Professionals
The best way to get better at writing dialogue isn't going to be a random post on Tumblr like this, it's going to be by consuming other media and embodying the things you see.
Put on your favorite movie or TV show. Study how the characters look when they speak, how they talk, how the scene is set up. Look at how the actors portray the emotions their characters are having, and how the dialogue itself is paired in tandem with scene choreography.
Read your favorite books, too, and see how the authors write their dialogue. You may find that they all have different styles and ways of doing it, and can adopt ideas from each!
5. If You're Getting Stuck, Write the Dialogue First
If you're having a lot of trouble writing the entire scene, just write down the dialogue. Nothing else. Try to make the conversation as interesting as possible while still being bare bones, and make sure it accomplishes the goals that you want it to.
Do you want to make two characters grow closer?
Do you want to introduce a new plot point?
Foreshadow?
Make sure all that gets done in the bare-bones version so that you don't get too caught up in the embellishment to remember, then add everything else in later!
A speech tag is a verb (usually paired with a name or pronoun) after a line of dialogue to describe how a character is saying that certain line of dialogue.
(Example: “I don’t want to go,” she argued.)
Speech tags are an amazing way to help you convey how a character is speaking, but be warned! Too much of anything is never a good thing. Make sure you’re using the right speech tag for the right situation, and if you’re having trouble, don’t be afraid to say ‘Said’!
“Said” is NOT dead!
If you want general dialogue tips, check out my post here!
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