I was working on revisions for a story after reading several critiques and got to thinking. How do most writers handle dialogue tags? Is it supposed to be “What a beautiful day, ” said Tina. OR “What a beautiful day,” Tina said. So I decided to check some picture books and chapter books to see how these authors handled the matter.
Picture Books:
“Ooh! Ooh! I know,” said Cutesy. “Let’s give ourselves makeovers!” ~ Oh, Nuts! by Tammi Sauer, 2012
“When I grow up, I am going to marry chocolate cake!” said Betty Bunny. ~ Betty Bunny Loves Chocolate Cake by Michael B. Kaplan, 2011
“Mmmmm!” said Goldilocks. “That chocolate pudding smells delicious…” ~ Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems, 2012
“Are you going to sneeze?” said his mother. ~ Chu’s Day by Neil Gaiman, 2013
Chapter Books:
“Oh my gosh!” Annie whispered with delight.
“Yea, I do. They’re really cute,” said Jack, laughing. ~ A Perfect Time for Pandas by Mary Pope Osborne, 2012
“Everything all right, Geronimeister?” asked Thea.
“Uncle Trap, you really are a hero!” Ben exclaimed. ~ by Geronimo Stilton, 2000
“But I want an Oompa-Loompa!” screamed Veruca.
“Off we go!” cried Mr. Wonka. ~ Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl, 1964
So from these examples, it looks like most picture books use the word “said” first in the dialogue tag, but in chapter books, it could go either way. What do you think? How do you write your dialogue tags? Thanks in advance for your advice!
Tina's Tidbits 
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March 19, 2013 at 5:16 am
Laura S.
Interesting post, Tina. I had to go back and look at some of my stories to get a sense of my leanings. I tend to use “said” when I have the tag at the end of the dialogue. However, I often have the tag preceding the dialogue. Example: Mouse muttered, “Why do I have to do all the work around here.”
March 19, 2013 at 5:29 am
tinamcho
You’re fast to reply! Thanks for sharing your sample and how you use dialogue tags. It’ll be interesting to see what our kidlit community does!
March 19, 2013 at 11:47 am
Cathy Ballou Mealey
Hmmm…well after looking mine over I see in my PB’s I have a strong preference for the *said Cathy* version when it is followed by an additional sentence of dialogue. (As in the Sauer and Willems examples above)
If it’s the end of the character speaking, I seem to use *Cathy said*
Neat exercise!
March 19, 2013 at 2:19 pm
tinamcho
Thanks for sharing your style, Cathy. Interesting observations!
March 19, 2013 at 12:14 pm
Genevieve Petrillo
I am usually a said-first kind of writer, but if it sounds better reversed, I do change it up. Thanks for the examples.
March 19, 2013 at 2:20 pm
tinamcho
Me, too, Genevieve. I also use said first. But I noticed others using the tag turned around which got me to wondering…
March 19, 2013 at 12:24 pm
Romelle Broas
Funny you ask this wuestion because just last week I was Trying to find the answer on Google. It seems that both are acceptable. But I prefer “said Jill.” But there are few instances like what Laura S. gave that I use too. It all depends on the action and word choice for “said.” Great topic!
March 19, 2013 at 2:21 pm
tinamcho
Thanks for sharing your style, Romelle. That is funny you were asking the same question. I wonder what editors prefer.
March 19, 2013 at 12:25 pm
Romelle Broas
Wuestion…sorry I had my mouth full. I meant “question.”
March 19, 2013 at 1:32 pm
Carrie Finison
Great topic, Tina! I do “said Dad.” At least I think I do. I should check!
I also find that I often put the dialogue tag in the middle of what the character is saying, rather than at the end.
“No, thanks,” said Dad. “If I eat one more pancake I’ll burst.”
What do you think about using tags other than ‘said’? I try to do it sparingly, but I know some editors have a complete moratorium on it.
March 19, 2013 at 2:22 pm
tinamcho
Thanks, Carrie, for sharing. You know, I’ve heard that “said” is preferred rather than changing to other fancier tags. But I feel “said” can get monotonous after a while.
March 20, 2013 at 8:57 pm
Hannah Holt
That’s what I hear, too. When using “said” it almost becomes invisible. Trying to substitute with too many other words almost draws attention to the tags instead of the dialog.
March 20, 2013 at 10:07 pm
tinamcho
Excellent point, Hannah! I never heard that reasoning before.
March 19, 2013 at 2:44 pm
Gisele
I love analyzing things like this in published works. I also use “said” first, and I’d say it accounts for about three quarters of my dialogue tags. I sometimes use the words whispered or asked as tags, and the odd use of things like shrieked or screamed, but nothing too far from that range. I also like to use action tags to keep things alive. 🙂
March 19, 2013 at 11:47 pm
Tina Cho
Thanks for sharing how you use dialogue tags, Gisele. Having said first seems to be the most popular.
March 20, 2013 at 11:39 am
Beth MacKinney
I try to avoid dialogue tags as much as possible. Many are not necessary. One good technique is to use action sentences rather than dialogue tags. (This works well in middle grade.) I.e:
“Hey! That’s my chocolate bar,” said Bob.
“Hey!” Bob snatched the candy. “That’s my chocolate bar.”
March 20, 2013 at 7:14 pm
Tina Cho
Great suggestion and technique, Beth. I”ll have to see if I’ve tried that in my latest ms.
March 20, 2013 at 9:28 pm
Darshana
Thanks Tina. This was helpful. I need to go analyze some published books as well as my own stories.
March 20, 2013 at 10:07 pm
tinamcho
Glad it helped, Darshana. Let me know if you find any additional info about this topic.
March 21, 2013 at 3:56 am
Gisele
There’s an excellent article about this topic here: http://www.writing-world.com/grammar/said.shtml
March 21, 2013 at 5:30 am
tinamcho
This is perfect, Gisele! Thanks for sharing! Although it didn’t mention whether the said is usually first or switched. But it’s great to know said is the verb of choice.
March 21, 2013 at 5:57 am
Gisele
Okay, I’m back…lol. I found this article: http://www.fiction-writers-mentor.com/dialogue-tags.html
And came upon this: (Note that the text read said Jane (or whoever) rather than Jane said. You can use either, depending on what sounds right and works for you. But if you’re using pronouns, always put them first, e.g. he said rather than said he.)
Soooo, I would say that in general, he said is more prevalent in writing for older kids and adults while either works for chapter books (not sure where MG stands) and using “said” seems to be the general rule when writing for young kids, especially picture books, but either use is accepted?
March 21, 2013 at 6:10 am
tinamcho
Wow, you’re good, Gisele! Thanks for doing this research for me!
March 21, 2013 at 6:12 am
Gisele
You’re welcome, Tina! It was my pleasure. I love researching stuff like this! 🙂
March 21, 2013 at 5:43 am
Gisele
I noticed something interesting, too. I didn’t even realize I did this, but when writing for YA I almost always use so and so said. It seems to me that putting “said” first may be more prevalent in writing for younger readers? I think it may also depend on the tone of the piece, the author’s style, or the publisher’s preference? I’m going to keep looking around and see if I can find anything else on the subject. Now I’m curious! lol
March 21, 2013 at 5:58 am
Gisele
Ooops, I meant using “said” first seems to be the general rule when writing for young kids…
March 25, 2013 at 5:04 pm
Tracy Campbell
Sorry for the delay in responding, but I wanted to check this out before I answered. The rule is “he said” or “Bob said.” Rules, of course, are meant to be broken as long as we know why we’re breaking them. It does seem that in PB, “said Bob” is the preferred route, but in middle grade, Y.A., or adult novels, “Bob said” is the way to go. I try not to use said at all.
March 26, 2013 at 4:33 am
tinamcho
Thanks, Tracy, for also clarifying! Very helpful.