Quackcast 754 - The role of dialogue! cover art

Quackcast 754 - The role of dialogue!

Quackcast 754 - The role of dialogue!

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 Dialogue is used for more than just simple speech, it moves the story forward, it indicates what characters want, what they feel, what they want others to feel and more. But it's used a bit differently across different media. Comics have their own particular ways of doing things and it's quite interesting! We thank Banes for coming up with this topic! In pure prose the world is all relayed in text so dialogue is king there, characters can talk and talk forever and everything can be relayed through their speech if the author wants. Radio plays are much like prose, but actors help out with their performances, SFX has a role, and time is a factor. Plays are a different thing, settings, scenes and props are limited so a LOT of work has to be taken up by the dialogue, but it's all governed by linear, limited time, so once something is said it's gone, you can't linger on it or go back over it, so it has to do its job in the moment (this isn't a disadvantage though), but the actors can do all the work of showing expressions, tone, emotions, humour, physicality and many other things. Movies, TV, and games are different again, they're also limited by time (though you can go back if you like), the actors can do a lot of the work and massive amounts of work can be done with the visuals. Lastly we have comics where like prose they are not limited by linear time, and like film visuals can do a huge amount of the work. Dialogue in comics can work very well when there's a symbiosis between the visuals and what is written in the speech bubbles. Like film you can offload a lot of work of the dialogue to the visuals. When I do a page I write out what the text should be but I don't finalise it till I have the page art done, though I know what the characters need to say and how the story should go. When the page is done then I whittle down the text to make it work with the visuals, so a character might just say a single word, but because of the art it can be like a full paragraph of meaning. When I work with a pre-written script like in Bottomless waitress or The Key of Dreams I can't change the dialogue so I make sure the way I draw the scene and the characters delivering it enhances what's said and even helps it say much much more. I also letter things in such a way that it tweaks the delivery of the dialogue, so the characters are “acting” it out in a specific way, like giving each sentence its own bubble and placing them in specific ways, closer together or massively spread out, making them different sizes, colours, or shapes etc. How do you approach dialogue in comics? And how do you prefer to see it as a reader? Next week we're tacking “endings”, mainly when fans or IP owners demand an author get around to ending their work and suggest other to take over that role. This week Gunwallace has given us a musical theme inspired by Stiletto - The coolest of the coo. Step into the warm, cozy, underground lounge and sip an espresso martini. The bass thrumbs a tune out of dark wood, the piano does the tango, the guitar floats on a sunny, serene pool, and the percussion sneaks into a corner to be alone and snuggle. Topics and shownotes Links Featured comic: Orcs Company - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/news/2025/aug/19/featured-comic-orcs-company/ Featured music: Stiletto - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/Stiletto/ - by VinoMas, rated T. Special thanks to: Gunwallace - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/Gunwallace/ Tantz Aerine - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/Tantz_Aerine/ Ozoneocean - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/ozoneocean Kawaiidaigakusei - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/kawaiidaigakusei Banes - https://www.theduckwebcomics.com/user/Banes/ VIDEO exclusive! Become a subscriber on the $5 level and up to see our weekly Patreon video and get our advertising perks! - https://www.patreon.com/DrunkDuck Even at $1 you get your name with a link on the front page and a mention in the weekend newsposts! Join us on Discord - https://discordapp.com/invite/7NpJ8GS
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