1 . During a judging period for a recent short story contest, I started thinking a lot about dialogue tags. Because in many submissions characters didn’t “say” a thing. They shouted, they inquired, they assumed. Some characters screamed while others murmured. But no one “said” anything. And I started wondering why.
Why do we tell beginner writers to avoid creative dialogue tags in the first place? Why do we insist that characters should stick to “said,” “asked,” and the occasional “sighed?” And, if the advice is so of-repeated, why are writers still unable to resist the siren call of weep, scream, snap, or laugh?
The more I thought about it, the more I understood the temptation. We’re always encouraged to use strong, actionable verbs in our prose. Why walk when you can skip or wander? Why cry when you can sob or weep? Why wouldn’t we reach for exciting verbs instead of mild-boring dull-blah said? Why couldn’t each verb be a tiny sparkling gem in its own right?
The problem, I think, is that every jewel needs a setting to become something more than the sum of its parts. Without something to provide structure, a collection of the world’s most glorious diamonds would still only amount to a heap of rocks.
And a dialogue tag should never, ever be the diamond in any given sentence.
Dialogue is your diamond, friends. When we read your work, your dialogue should be so bright, so sparkling, so lifelike, so wonderfully realistic that our brains “hear” each line instead of merely reading it. We don’t need to be told a character is shouting — we can sense it in the way they spit out words, clench fists, or storm from the room.
A dialogue tag is a mere signpost along the narrative journey, gently indicating who said what. It’s part of a story’s experience, but it’s not part of the story itself, nor should it be treated as such. Dialogue tags are similar to lighting in a Broadway play: without it, the audience would have no idea what was going on, but it usually strives to shine without calling too much attention to itself.
What’s more, readers may not initially imagine a particular line being “sobbed.” When we reach the end of a sentence and find out our leading lady has actually sobbed instead of whispered, it pulls us right out of the story. We pause. We reread the line. We adjust our understanding and begin again. But that wonderful momentum when we’re fully immersed in the scene, holding our breath to find out what our heroine says next, is lost.
Creating a successful work of fiction is about giving the reader all the materials they need to build your fictional world in their mind and not a scrap more. Readers need believable dialogue. They need voices so compelling that they pop right off the page and into our ears. And if you’ve created dynamic characters who speak words we can really hear, you will never need to tell us how something was said.
Senior Editor
1. According to the Senior Editor, the beginner writers are tempted to ______.| A．replace a dull “said” with exciting verbs |
| B．omit what the character said in a dialogue |
| C．resist the warning against strong emotions |
| D．overuse the word “said” in their submissions |
| A．glorious diamonds | B．heaps of rocks |
| C．tiny, sparkling gems | D．Broadway play lighting |
| A．Dialogue tags are said to be the most important aspect of storytelling. |
| B．Without dialogue tags, readers have to reread to adjust understanding. |
| C．Creative dialogue tags may interrupt readers’ wonderful reading flow. |
| D．Effective dialogue tags should describe characters’ emotions directly. |
| A．good works of fiction give as many materials as possible |
| B．readers cannot imagine a line without the dialogue tags |
| C．what was said should be prioritized over how it was said |
| D．writers should choose powerful words for dialogue tags |
2 . This passage is adapted from Jane Eyre by Charloue Bronte.
Seeing me, she recovered herself: she made a sort of effort to smile and expressed a few words of congratulations, but the smile disappeared, and the sentence was abandoned unfinished. She put up her glasses and pushed her chair back from the table.
“I feel so astonished,” she began, “I hardly know what to say to you, Miss Eyre. I have surely not been dreaming, have I? Sometimes I half fall asleep when I am sitting alone and fancy things that have never happened. It has seemed to me more than once when I have been in a doze (打盹), that my dear husband, who died fifteen years since, has come in and sat down beside me; and that I have even heard him call me by my name, Alice, as he used to do. Now, can you tell me whether it is actually true that Mr. Rochester has asked you to marry him? Don’t laugh at me. But I really thought he came in here five minutes ago and said that in a month you would be his wife.“
“He has said the same thing to me,” I replied.
“He has! Do you believe him? Have you accepted him?”
“Yes.”
She looked at me confused. “I could never have thought it. He is a proud man; all the Rochesters were proud; and his father at least liked money. He, too, has always been called careful. He means to marry you?”
“He tells me so.”
She surveyed my whole person: in her eyes, I read that they had there found no charm powerful enough to solve the mystery.
“It passes me!” she continued, “but no doubt it is true since you say so. How it will answer I cannot tell:I really don’t know. Equality of position and fortune is often advisable in such cases; and there are twenty years of difference in your ages. He might almost be your father.”
“No, indeed, Mrs. Fairfax!” I protested, annoyed, “he is nothing like my father! No one, who saw us together, would suppose it for an instant. Mr. Rochester looks as young, and is as young, as some men of twenty-five.”
“Is it really for love he is going to marry you?” she asked.
I was so hurt by her coldness and skepticism that tears rose to my eyes.
“I am sorry to make you unhappy,” continued the widow (寡妇), “but you are so young, and so little acquainted with men,I wished to put you on your guard. It is an old saying that’ all is not gold that glitters’; and in this case,I do fear there will be something found to be different to what either you or I expect.”
“Why? Am I a monster?” I said. “Is it impossible that Mr. Rochester should have a sincere affection for me?”
“No, you are very well; and much improved recently. and Mr. Rochester, I dare say, is fond of you.I have always noticed that you were a sort of pet of his There are times when, for your sake, I have been a little uneasy at his marked preference and have wished to put you on your guard; but I did not like to suggest even the possibility of wrong. I knew such an idea would shock, perhaps offend you; and you were so discreet (谨慎的) and so thoroughly modest and sensible, I hoped you might be trusted to protect yourself. Last night I cannot tell you what I suffered when I sought all over the house, and could find you nowhere, nor the master either. and then, at twelve o’clock, saw you come in with him.”
“Well, never mind that now,” I interrupted impatiently; “it is enough that all was right.”
“I hope all will be right in the end,” she said. “But, believe me, you cannot be too careful. Try and keep Mr. Rochester at a distance: distrust yourself as well as him. Gentlemen in his station are not accustomed to marrying their governesses.”
1. In this passage Miss Eyre’s feelings about her relationship with Mr. Rochester can be best described as ______.| A．grateful | B．incredible | C．sensitive | D．confident |
| A．Mr. Rochester is fond of Miss Eyre |
| B．Mr. Rochester will break Miss Eyre’s heart |
| C．Mr. Rochester should not marry his governess |
| D．Mr. Rochester and Miss Eyre are of the same social class |
| A．is brave enough to challenge the society to marry Miss Eyre |
| B．will treat Miss Eyre like a governess after marriage |
| C．is incapable of loving Miss Eyre for his whole life |
| D．may not be sincere about his marriage proposal |
The colour was rushing to his cheeks, and his eyes were wide open,
4 . Mathilde Loisel, a beautiful woman, is miserable with her life. Although from a family of clerks, she always felt she had “fallen from a higher station” and longs to be part of the upper class. With no prospect of meeting these dreams she marries a middle-class Parisian clerk. This leaves her unhappy, suffering from what she thinks as a life of poverty. Although her husband’s income is sufficient for their needs, Mathilde still dreams of being wealthy. Mathilde focuses on her lack of possessions such as gowns and jewelry instead of enjoying the life she has. She even becomes jealous of her school friend, Madame Forestier, who has married a wealthy man.
One evening, the triumphant Monsieur Loisel comes home and hands her an invitation to a ball at the Ministry of Public Instruction where he works. Mathilde surprises him by refusing to go and throws the invitation onto the floor. She gets upset and tells her husband that without a new gown and jewelry she cannot possibly attend the ball. Monsieur Loisel reluctantly agrees to pay for a gown costing four hundred francs, knowing he will not be able to afford the hunting gun he had been saving up to buy. Mathilde buys the dress but complains that she still has no jewelry. For once though, Mathilde is pleased when her husband comes up with the solution to ask her friend to lend some jewelry.
Madame Forestier offers Mathilde to choose what she wants and Mathilde selects a beautiful diamond necklace from a black satin box. When Madame Forestier sees how happy the necklace makes her friend feel she agrees to lend it to her for the ball.
At the ball, Mathilde is the most elegant and graceful woman there, smiling and happy. All the men ask her name and want to be introduced to her. She dances with all of the attaches from the cabinet and is even noticed by the minister. Dancing with happiness and passion, intoxicated with pleasure, Mathilde exists for a time in the world she longs to be part of.
At 4 am, she is ready to leave. As Monsieur Loisel places the wrap over his wife’s shoulders, the contrast of the poverty of her wrap with the elegant ball gown is too much to bear and to save any embarrassment she hurries to leave before anyone notices her. When they reach the street, they cannot find a cab and start to walk home. They walked towards the Seine in despair, shivering with cold. At last on the quay side they find “one of those ancient night cabs which, as though they were ashamed to show their shabbiness during the day, are never seen round Paris until after dark”.
The Loisels arrive home at the Rue des Martyrs, and Mathilde’s happiness turns to horror as she sees that the necklace is missing when she looks in the mirror to admire herself one more time. She and Monsieur Loisel search frantically, but they cannot find the necklace. Monsieur Loisel even retraces their steps back along the whole route and then spends the next day enquiring and trying to find the necklace. Finally, in defeat, he suggests Mathilde writes a letter to Madame Forestier, explaining she will return the necklace after repair, lying that the clasp had broken. This story allows them time to continue the search.
When the Loisels are unable to find the necklace, they use its jewelry box to search for the jeweler where it was purchased. The jeweler offers the couple a similar necklace for thirty-six-thousand francs with the understanding that he will buy it back if they find the necklace before the end of February. However, they do not find the necklace, and they take on huge debt that forever changes their lives. Monsieur Loisel, frightened by the trouble yet to come, by the “black misery” that is about to fall upon him, by the prospect of all the physical sacrifices and the “moral tortures” he is about to suffer, goes to pay the jeweler thirty-six-thousand francs and collects the diamond necklace.
When Mathilde takes the newly purchased necklace to Madame Forestier, she fears her friend will discover that the necklace is a replacement and consider her a thief. Although Madame Forestier criticizes Mathilde for bringing the necklace back late, she never opens the case to look at it.
The next years are horrible for Mathilde, who works like a servant, her own servant having been dismissed. The Loisels move to cheaper housing. Mathilde dresses in work clothing and becomes responsible for doing all the family’s “odious” housework duties. She takes on this role with “sudden heroism”. Monsieur Loisel works a second job at night. They work for ten years to repay their debts. The strain of deprivation takes its toll, and Mathilde ages rapidly. Occasionally, she thinks back and remembers the wonders of the ball, but finally, their debt is paid in full.
One day on the street, Mathilde meets Madame Forestier, still looking lovely. At first not recognizing Mathilde, Madam Forestier is shocked by her friend’s haggard appearance. Mathilde explains that her life has been hard because of Madame Forestier. Mathilde shares the truth regarding her loss and replacement of the necklace that she had borrowed. She explains that it was purchased with ten years of hard labour. She proudly describes how she met her obligation both to Madame Forestier and to society.
Madame Forestier, deeply moved, takes Mathilde’s hands in her own and tells her the truth. The necklace that she had loaned Mathilde was mere costume jewelry worth only five hundred francs.
1. Mathilde Loisel refused to go to the ball because she ________.| A．was angry with her husband |
| B．thought she was not invited |
| C．was upset for having lost her jewelry |
| D．feared that she would be looked down upon |
① Mathilde realized that the necklace was missing.
② The Loisels worked hard to pay their debt.
③ Monsieur Loisel brought home an invitation to a ball
④ Monsieur Loiser bought a diamond necklace from a jeweler.
⑤ Mathilde borrowed a necklace from her friend Madame Forestier.
⑥ Mathilde talked to her friend Madame Forestier about her “sudden heroism”
| A．③⑤①④②⑥ | B．③①⑤②④⑥ |
| C．⑤③①②④⑥ | D．⑤③④②①⑥ |
| A．trusts her friend very much |
| B．forgets about the necklace |
| C．is sure that the necklace is in the case |
| D．doesn’t care much about the necklace |
| A．unfortunate but honest. | B．lucky but selfish. |
| C．smart but lazy. | D．beautiful but evil. |
5 . This month, science fiction magazine Lights peed changed its normal publishing schedule to bring readers a special issue: “Women Destroy Science Fiction! ”
It’s more than just a collection of stories entirely edited and written by women. It’s an exhibition of all the ways in which women are writing—and have written.
Many of the stories will be considered the best hard science fiction even by the pickiest critics (评论家). For example, Tananarive Due’s Like Daughter deals with what happens when humans have easy access to cloning. The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick by Charlie Jane Anders takes place in a future where changing brain chemistry is as common as taking vitamins now.
However, it is also true that the authors are more focused on the relations between people, or between people and society, or changing cultural and gender roles. There are stories that refuse to stay firmly within science fiction borders. For example, James Tiptree Jr. ’s Love Is the Plan and the Plan Is Death is a mixture of horror, mystery and even love, something not commonly seen in science fiction.
So are women destroying science fiction?
If your idea of science fiction is limited to the concept formed by works like Isaac Asimov’s Night Fall and Arthur Charles Clarke’s Childhood’s End, then many of the stories within these pages may well seem like devastation.
“But the stories we read and the stories we tell shape who we are, ” Pat Murphy once said in a famous speech back in 1991. “They also shape the culture they’re born into. Thus, if women keep writing such kind of science fiction, and keep calling it science fiction, the room for science fiction will expand. They will exist nicely beside other kinds of science fiction. ”
I cannot agree more. Women have the right to create a space for themselves within science fiction. one filled with their dreams, experiences and realities.
1. What is special about the latest edition of Lights peed?| A．All the stories are written by female novelists. |
| B．It is a collection of the published love stories. |
| C．It has been well received by most of the critics. |
| D．Every story in it belongs to hard science fiction. |
| A．Like Daughter. | B．The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick. |
| C．Childhood’s End. | D．Love Is the Plan and the Plan Is Death. |
| A．Destruction. | B．Progress. |
| C．Contribution. | D．Reward. |
| A．Science fiction is an important part of our life. |
| B．Women are unsuitable to write science fiction. |
| C．The definition of science fiction should be expanded. |
| D．Science fiction should focus mainly on future technologies. |
