Formatting dialogue can be tricky, but consistency and familiarity with convention are
essential to proficient writing. Use these nine formatting rules to structure your dialogue on the page of your short story. I am only suggesting this because of what I did notice from the previous books that writers wrote and they always ended with “he or she said.”
Suggest you get creative, example “he said knowing how she would reply” or “with a
nervous answer she said, she understood.”
1). Use Quotation Marks to Indicate Spoken Word
Whenever someone is speaking, their words should be enclosed in double quotation
marks.
Example: “Why don’t we go ice skating.”
2). Dialogue Tags Stay Outside the Quotation Marks
Dialogue tags attribute a line of dialogue to one of the characters so that the reader
knows who is speaking. Dialogue tags stay outside the quotation marks, while the
punctuation stays inside the quotation marks.
Example: “There was blood everywhere,” Shane explained.
If the dialogue tag comes before the dialogue, the comma appears before the first
quotation mark.
Example: Shane explained, “There was blood everywhere.”
If the dialogue ends with an exclamation point or a question mark, the tags that follow
begin in lowercase. The dialogue punctuation still goes inside the quotation marks.
Example: “There was blood everywhere!” he explained.
3). Use a Separate Sentence for Actions That Happen Before or After the Dialogue
If an action occurs before or after the lines of dialogue, it should be given its own
sentence. For instance, if Michael gasps and then speaks, it would look like this:
Example: Michael gasped. “You’re dying you, idiot?”
4). Use Single Quotes When Quoting Something Within the Dialogue
If a character is quoting something or somebody else within their dialogue, use single
quotation marks to indicate that the character is quoting someone else.
Example: Eric started to cry. “When you said, ‘I never want to see you again!’ it hurt my
feelings.”
5). Use a New Paragraph to Indicate a New Speaker
Any time you change speakers, you should begin a new paragraph with an indent. If the speaker performs an action after speaking, you should keep that speaker’s action in the same paragraph. Then, move onto a new line in the next paragraph when someone else begins speaking. This helps the reader know who is speaking and who is performing the action.
Example: “Terry, I’m going to need you to take a look at this,” said Captain Barry. He
gestured to the photograph on his desk.
“My God,” muttered Captain Barry. His eyes darted from the photograph to his empty
coffee cup. He knew it was going to be a long night of discussion.
6). Start with a Lowercase Letter If Action Interrupts Dialogue
If action comes in the middle of a sentence of dialogue, the first letter of the second
fragment should be in lowercase.
Example: “At the end of the day,” the professor bellowed, “there are always more things
to do for the writers’ guild!”
7). Long Speeches Have Their Own Rules
If a person speaks for a long enough period of time so as to necessitate a new paragraph, the dialogue formatting rules are slightly different from normal. The opening quotation marks are placed at the first part of the first paragraph, as well as each subsequent paragraph. The closing quotation marks, however, are placed only at the end of the last paragraph.
Example: Carmenn took a deep breath and began. “Here’s the thing about sharks.
They’re vicious, vicious creatures. They only know how to do one thing: kill. Have you
ever seen a shark in the open water? Probably not. Because if you had, you’d already be dead.
“I saw a shark once. I was scuba diving off the marina, looking for starfish to give to my
sick wife. She believes that starfish are good luck. Well, one man’s fortune is another
man’s folly. All of a sudden, I found myself face to face with a great white. My heart
stopped. I froze up. I knew that was the end. If it hadn’t been for that pontoon boat, we
wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
8). Em Dashes Indicate Interruption
Em dashes (not to be confused with hyphens) are used to indicate interruptions and
abrupt endings in dialogue. When formatting dialogue with em dashes, the dashes should be placed inside the quotation marks.
Example: Tim began to speak. “I just thought we could—”
“I don’t want to hear it,” interrupted Jim.
9). Don’t Add Additional Punctuation When Using Ellipses
If you’re writing dialogue that ends with an ellipsis, you should not add a comma or any
additional punctuation. Ellipses are used to indicate the trailing off of dialogue.
Example: Ginelle let out a low whistle. “I guess this is the end of the line…” she said,
her voice trailing off.
Here are some other suggestions. Choose easier words, look for complicated words that you can replace with simpler ones. For instance, instead of saying “terminated,” say “ended.” Your goal as a writer is to show off your ideas, not your vocabulary.
Shorten your sentences
Long sentences are exhausting for your readers. Sometimes, you must use long sentences to explain a complex idea. It’s okay to use long sentences sometimes. But try to follow long sentences with shorter sentences to help your reader engage with your text.
Remove  jargon
Jargon and domain-specific language can impede your audience’s understanding. Use
terms that everyone will understand making your document more readable.
Eliminate extra words from your sentences
As I mentioned previously, the longer your sentences, the higher your readability score. By removing  glue words  from your sentences, you can make them shorter and clearer.
Use active voice
Active sentence constructions are typically shorter and cleared than passive constructions.
For instance, “Jane opened her present” is much simpler to understand than “Her present was opened by Jane.” Fixing passive voice can improve your readability score.
Remember, the more readable your writing, the more effective it is for people to enjoy your short story or even your book that you plan to write?