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If you're writing how a character is speaking, is it acceptable to use words that are used locally (local to the character I mean), say for example if that one character substitutes the word "toilet" for "loo" or if instead of saying "are not" they say "ain't", would that be looked upon as lazy writing or would it be okay if it was the one character talking like that and the others were talking normally?
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Where you should be careful is over-use of dialect - which can be very irritating to a reader.
I love it!
“Yo cor sell that warmin’ pon, Daphne,” I says, “it’s got ‘istory. It were me ma’s an’ ‘er ma’s an’ ‘er ma’s ma’s afower ‘er. Doe thee talk so saft.”
“It‘s thee what’s saft,” ‘er says, “clussomin’ that owd dust magnet, though if yo ‘ommers the dent out, it might fetch a few quid at a car boot. Now, goo an’ find a clane ganzy, then we’ll goo an’ book the Registry Office an’ buy thee a nice suit fer the weddin’, I’m not ‘avin’ folk sayin’ I’m weddin’ a bag-o-rags.”
An extract from something I read on Black Country Radio a couple of years back. I have not been offered a return booking
But it's perfectly possible to 'suggest' a dialect or accent by just using the odd word here and there.
On radio, or anywhere else it was performed, I imagine it would be fine. We're more used to hearing than seeing accents.
I have no intention of making a habit of dialect pieces.
Another simple one is a character I have who always leaves the 'g' off the end of 'ing' words, and I check back to make sure he said "talkin'" and not "talking", and the same with all the other '-ing' words (of which there are plenty, of course) whenever and wherever he happens to utter them in a sentence or remark.
There are also expressions, turns of phrase, etc., only used by particular characters because they are part of their own heritage, and I often re-read everything that character has said, to make sure the same mode of expression is there whenever they speak. It's great fun, actually! Helps me to identify with my characters. I know what they are like...
Consistency is paramount for your writing to be convincing.