How to Tell the Reader the Character is Dreaming

[Lafayette]

I'm hitting a snag in my latest writing.

I've been using the ploy of having my heroine dream in order for the reader to know what the heroine is thinking and feeling and what has transpired in the past. To do this do I put everything in italics or just part of it or none of it? Do I or should I tell the reader who the characters are in the dream?

I welcome all directives, insights, and opinions.

Thank you.

 

[Droflet]

Why not just write she fell asleep and wandered into a dream. Or something like that. A line break wouldn't hurt either.

 

[alexvss]

Something I usually do is to start a dream right after a scene break, without telling the reader. Then, the character wakes up.

 

[tinkerdan]

I use italics; the key is to be consistent over the whole piece.

Unless you are trying to annoy people by not letting them know right up front that this is a dream, it is best to have something specific established so that they do know.

Using italics and being consistent make it clear to the reader that--this is a dream.

If the goal is to not let the reader know until the character wakes up then you probably just want to write it all the same as regular narrative.

 

[Wayne Mack]

Italics would work for a short segment, but for a longer one, I suggest using a section break or even a whole chapter.

 

[Ogma]

Italics is fine for a short bit, but if it's a long section it gets annoying, particularly on devices. Putting breaks both ends of the dream is a good idea. You could italicize the transition into the dream but not the dream itself.

 

[Astro Pen]

Be very careful with dreams. You have to move into using 'dream logic', which is very different to real world logic.
Dreams are not documentary. Chronology is all over the place, the dead are alive, locations morph, emotions are wrenched around, thwartings, being lost etc' constantly occur.
Whilst it is fair to say the dreams can seed from real events, it is unwise and unconvincing to use them as simple portrayal of trains of thoughts or as clean memories, they are not.

 

[The Judge]

When I've done it, I've changed from the past tense used throughout the rest of the book into present tense for the dream itself, which immediately marks is as different, and I've also changed the style of writing for the dream sequence, so it's more elliptic. For my work, that was enough to set it apart.

I'd suggest, though, that having a dream sequence isn't a device to be overused and I'd limit it to one or two sequences for important issues that can't be easily or better shown another way, and I also feel that it should have an impact on the dreamer, which impact causes a reaction in the following scene ie it's not simply a device for the author to give information.

Here, for instance, why can't you show her thoughts and feelings by writing from her close POV? Why can't you slip in details of the past in ordinary narrative?

 

[Phyrebrat]

Here, for instance, why can't you show her thoughts and feelings by writing from her close POV? Why can't you slip in details of the past in ordinary narrative?

This was my biggest thought about this, too. The other thing with dreams is their abstraction so they’re poor for using as anything other than a comment on the character’s state of mind, or perhaps in terms of prescience or clairvoyant narratives.

Finally, it’s easy to write one dream sequence snd then when you’re proofing/editing, finding you’ve let about four or five slip in! They’re stealthy!! I know this from personal experience

 

[Dan Jones]

Dreams can be useful tools, but I don't think they're the right tools for what you seem to want to do. Dreams are gestalt and abstract as Phyrebrat says, and shouldn't be used in too literal a fashion. As TJ says, if you want to express a character's thoughts or internal monologue, you don't need a dream, the natural text ought to be sufficient. If you're using internal monologue, then italics is the usual way of expressing it.

 

[Lafayette]

Why not just write she fell asleep and wandered into a dream. A line break wouldn't hurt either.

I will go back and see if your idea will work and if is what I want.

Thank you.

 

[Lafayette]

I use italics; the key is to be consistent over the whole piece.

If the goal is to not let the reader know until the character wakes up then you probably just want to write it all the same as regular narrative.

This dream sequence last for more than four pages. However, if I write it as a regular narrative then how is the reader to know that she was dreaming?

By the way, I indicate scene breaks by inserting seven asterisks in the of the middle of the page.

Thank you.

 

[Lafayette]

Be very careful with dreams. You have to move into using 'dream logic', which is very different to real world logic.

Thanks for the warning. I will keep this in mind when and if I write more dream sequences.

 

[Lafayette]

When I've done it, I've changed from the past tense used throughout the rest of the book into present tense for the dream itself, which immediately marks is as different, and I've also changed the style of writing for the dream sequence, so it's more elliptic. For my work, that was enough to set it apart.

I think I know what you're talking about, but could you give an example? I think I could better understand it if I could see it.

I'd suggest, though, that having a dream sequence isn't a device to be overused and I'd limit it to one or two sequences for important issues that can't be easily or better shown another way, and I also feel that it should have an impact on the dreamer, which impact causes a reaction in the following scene ie it's not simply a device for the author to give information.

I have two or three dream sequences in my story, but they're not consecutive they are scattered through out the book. Is this is what I should be doing? I also employ scene breaks with asterisks.

Here, for instance, why can't you show her thoughts and feelings by writing from her close POV? Why can't you slip in details of the past in ordinary narrative?

I'm not sure of how this is to be done. Again, can you give me an example?

Thanks for your advice.

 

[Lafayette]

This was my biggest thought about this, too. The other thing with dreams is their abstraction so they’re poor for using as anything other than a comment on the character’s state of mind, or perhaps in terms of prescience or clairvoyant narratives.

Don't people also dream what has transpired?

Finally, it’s easy to write one dream sequence snd then when you’re proofing/editing, finding you’ve let about four or five slip in! They’re stealthy!! I know this from personal experience

I know I'm being a pain, but can you give an example? I'm asking for this because I have no editor or any beta readers and I want to avoid as many mistakes as possible.

Thanks.

 

[Lafayette]

Dreams can be useful tools, but I don't think they're the right tools for what you seem to want to do.

What do you think I'm trying to do? I don't get your drift.

As TJ says, if you want to express a character's thoughts or internal monologue, you don't need a dream,

Why not?

Thanks for your insight.

 

[Guttersnipe]

I'd use italics as well.

 

[tinkerdan]

You might apply something similar to flashbacks.

This dream sequence last for more than four pages. However, if I write it as a regular narrative then how is the reader to know that she was dreaming?

That's where the author deviates from the current tense for a few sentences and then drops back into the narratives normal tense.
Then on the way out they deviate once more for a sentence or two to indicate they are coming out.

In this case you might do italic for a sentence or two and normal text until exit with another set of italics.

I once read a piece that had italics for flashbacks and they were sometimes four pages long and that was overdoing the whole thing. Four pages of italics was annoying.

Whatever you do you need to be consistent.

You could even make use of ellipses.

Regular Narrative

Spaces for scene break.

...go into dream Then come out...

Spaces for scene break.

Regular narrative.

And at least in the first instance make sure that the regular narrative points out that that was just a dream.
Might be helpful to do more than one and if there are enough dreams have it evident periodically to reinforce the standard that you are setting.

If the dreams have some mystical quality you could have something that indicates the character is going into a dream and then at the end something to indicate them coming out.

It could be something as simple as taking a meditation pose and the a scene break to the dream and at the end a scene break and coming out of the meditation in the next narrative portion.

 

[Victor Ratmin]

When it comes to published books, dreams will typically either be written in italics (Even if they last for pages) or use a different font type. Whilst it may seen strange to use a different font, I've seen it done in several books and have it work great. It helps the reader to subtly identify that you're not in the "Main" setting.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Be very careful with dreams. You have to move into using 'dream logic', which is very different to real world logic.
Dreams are not documentary. Chronology is all over the place, the dead are alive, locations morph, emotions are wrenched around, thwartings, being lost etc' constantly occur.
Whilst it is fair to say the dreams can seed from real events, it is unwise and unconvincing to use them as simple portrayal of trains of thoughts or as clean memories, they are not.

I agree. The world is very different in a dream, perspectives and rules change. It may be worth considering changing the POV for these sections to make them distinct from the rest of the novel? Or at least doing something to make it clear what are dreams and what are not. I agree that italics can help, but I'm not sure if I would want to read pages or chapters of italic text.