When a character in your story speaks a foreign language, should you write it out in that language, or in English?
How can you make the dialogue sound exotic without confusing the reader?
These are tricky questions.
Foreign languages can lend your characters and locations a more exotic flair, and even increase the dramatic tension in a scene.
But before you start sprinkling a certain je ne sais quoi into your prose, understand that you have four options.
Nervous about pitching your work to an editor or literary agent? Just avoid these five deal-breaking mistakes and you’ll put yourself well ahead of the competition. Continue reading
Her best customer is on fire, and a magic carpet is careening out of control. Can Dru save her friends—before it’s too late? FREE with author newsletter.
Can Dru solve a cryptic riddle, stop an angry Chinese spirit, and resist heaps of amazingly tasty dumplings – before an evil army of fiends conquers the world? Amazon
When a handsome mechanic with glowing red eyes pulls up in a possessed black muscle car, Dru’s world is turned upside down. Can her magic save the world—before his curse destroys it? Amazon
Sorcerers are disappearing off the streets. Greyson is missing. Hellbringer is on the loose. Can Dru stop the prophecy before legions of undead rise to consume the souls of everyone on Earth? Amazon
Can Dru save Greyson’s soul, salvage her friendships, and find the apocalypse scroll in time to stop doomsday? Amazon
Surrounded by criminals, can a con artist with a heart of gold find an ancient spider before it steals his memories — and his life? Amazon
When supernatural evil stalks the noir streets of 1947 New York, private detective Jazzy St. Clare is on the case. Ancient curses, dark sorcery and bloodthirsty fangs are no match for Jazzy’s killer wit and panache.
Laurence MacNaughton is the award-winning author of more than a dozen novels, novellas, and short stories. His work has been praised by Booklist, Publishers Weekly, RT Book Reviews, Library Journal, and Kirkus Reviews. He lives in Colorado with his wife and too many classic cars.
