Read Write Your Own: Mystery Online
Authors: Pie Corbett
Write Your Own: Mystery (19 page)
  Use speech marks to surround what is spoken
(including any punctuation marks in the speech). Use a comma to lead into what is said. When a new speaker says something, start on a new line. For example:
âI'm sorry about the cat,' said Connor.
Crabbit replied, âIt never caught any mice anyway.'
Paragraph checklist
Long paragraphs can be hard to read. Don't put your readers off!
Start a new paragraph for:
  A change of time, for example:
Early the next morning â¦
  A change of place, for example:
On the other side of the mountain stood â¦
  A change of action, for example:
At that moment the lights went out â¦
  A change of character, for example:
Unexpectedly, Dr Townley rounded the corner â¦
After all the time and effort you have put into writing your story, you now want some readers. You can publish your story in lots of different ways:
  read it aloud;
  email it to friends;
  turn it into a booklet to give to people;
  make a tape recording of it;
  post it on a website.
