[mara-katcher Posts: 4 Status: Offline Wish me luck!]

My PB has the thoughts of the main character, which are written in italics,  but is this the right way to go? Is inner dialogue too confusing for a PB? Should I change it to spoken dialogue or portray it differently?

[dkshumaker Posts: 1,448 Status: Offline WWW]

When I do inner dialogue in PS, I also italicize. Just be consistent in how you treat it. When the book is acquired, the editor and art director will decide exactly how they want inner dialogue to show up in the PB.

One thing to keep in mind, since it's inner dialogue, make sure it sounds true to the character and like it's a kid, not long, flowing sentences, etc. :-)

[Vijaya Posts: 7,172 Status: Online Encourage WWW]

If the text is first person narration, ALL that's written are his or her thoughts so you probably don't need to italicize. Even in a close 3rd person, thoughts and feelings belong to the narrator, so you don't have to emphasize it by italicizing blah, blah, blah, he thought. Ex. Narrator spies a jar. Cookies! It's clear that's his POV and he's thinking it. But as Deb says, above all, be consistent in your usage and the publisher will use their house style.

[HaroldU Posts: 849 Status: Offline Exec. Editor, Kane Press WWW]

As an editor I am wary of inner dialogue or thoughts in a picture book text. Is there an alternative? I'm not saying don't do it, but I am saying do it only if absolutely necessary.