Dialects, Languages, Lingo and other things

[sueKay]

Heya

Apologies if this has been done before, but I've found that while writing I have problems with writing for characters of different nationalities as well as writing military lingo and such. I thought this'd be a good place for people to offer help to other writers, by telling us what they can help with. E.g. if you speak other languages or if you've been in the military etc.

Me? At present I can only help people when they're writing Beckett or other Scottish characters...hope others can be more helpful.

[Mr Prophet]

Well, there's the Talking American thread for the Anglo-American angle and a medical advice thread somewhere, but I'm sure an Atlantis writer could benefit from a more varied approach. If anyone needs advice on Southern English 'RP' dialect, I'll be glad to lend a hand.

[Kthonia]

That is a great question. To get information on dialects, or foreign languages, try to get as close as you can to an original source. Try anything from offering to proofread term papers to foreign college students to watching interviews on the news. PBS did a great series, "The Story of English" which may be available on DVD somewhere that covers the American dialects and pronunciation.

When actually writing dialect/dialogue, my challenge is to keep all the voices straight in my head. One technique I've tried is this: once you have a rough first draft, print out several versions (for each character) and yellow highlight each person's lines. Kind of like handing a script to a group. Read through each focusing on the particular person and make sure each thread hangs together.

[sueKay]

cool

What I do when I get stuck in a story, is that I visualise the scene in my mind and imagine the voices, otherwise I go and watch an episode and see if that helps

[Major Tyler]

I've never been in the military, but my field of International Affairs necessitates learning about military lingo and procedures, so I'm happy to help in that regard.

[g8tr]

I'm new to the forum, but would be happy to help. I'm ex-military, a linguist as a matter of fact , as well as an Air Force Brat. I'd be happy to beta for military etiquette or jargon. Also, anything having to do with language-learning that I might be able to help.

I also just started writing fanfic this year, and looking for a beta myself....

[Freyja]

Everyone who needs anything in German - PM me, I'd love to help!

@g8tr
You can find beta readers here: http://forum.gateworld.net/showthread.php?t=15731