Dialogue Basics, Part I: Fancy Fontwork & Other Mechanical Mishaps

Dialogue is one of those basics of good writing you must learn to master, and yet, for some people, it's the most difficult. Some people believe you have to have a "gift" or "an ear" for dialogue. Perhaps. Even if you, like, totally suck at it, however, there are some moves every writer can try to improve what gifts your ear has received. It's going to take more than one post to work through them, but here is a good start:

The Mechanics

First of all, my little grasshoppers, learn the...