Forum: Author Hangout

How to Delimit Telepathic Communication when Writing in Plain Text

awnlee jawking 🚫

I know the delimitation of telepathic communication in SOL stories has been addressed many times on the forum, but the recommendations usually involve something not available in plain text.

The scenario of my story involves a teenage boy from a primitive culture accidentally becoming linked with a very old and sophisticated and potty-mouthed AI, with the two communicating telepathically.

The two obvious choices of delimiters, asterisks and angle brackets, would seem to conflict with SOL's markup conventions. Is there any way of disabling markup? Have you read or written telepathy stories that successfully used a different convention?

Thanks for your help,

AJ

Replies: Ernest Bywater Dominions Son Switch Blayde Keet Ernest Bywater rustyken

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@awnlee jawking

I use italics for thoughts in my stories and have, in the past, used them for thought conversation. Personally, i find the use of asterisks and angle brackets most annoying.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Ernest Bywater

italics

That appears to be the usual recommendation here when the author isn't limited to plain text.

AJ

Replies: Ernest Bywater

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@awnlee jawking

when the author isn't limited to plain text.

I can understand why someone doesn't want to use all of the options available with a word processor, but can't understand why they would willing give up the options of using bold and italics as just about everything uses them now.

Dominions Son 🚫

@awnlee jawking

One thing that could work for plain text:

Double quotes for normal dialog: "Halt, who goes there?"

Single quotes for telepathy: 'Hey, she's hot'

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Dominions Son

I don't think they're distinct enough, and the single quote could clash with quotations.

AJ

Switch Blayde 🚫
Updated:

@awnlee jawking

How about these things: {xxxxx}

or maybe: /xxxxx/

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Switch Blayde

Thanks. Good suggestions, but I'm leaning towards one of Keet's.

AJ

Keet 🚫

@awnlee jawking

You have to try it but double angle brackets might work. Otherwise you could use [blabla] or #blabla#. Nothing wrong with asterisks but in plain text they usually mean bold.

Replies: awnlee jawking awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫
Updated:

@Keet

Thanks. Actually, although double angle brackets satisfies my criteria unless they give SOL indigestion, I rather like the #blabla#.

#About fucking time one of you primitive ape creatures worked out how to activate me. Just my luck to be stranded on a planet populated by morons.#

AJ

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Keet

I vaguely recall a story, probably on SOL, which used @blabla@ and IMO it worked quite well. Would SOL allow that in a plain text submission without doing anything nefarious?

AJ

Replies: Lazeez Jiddan (Webmaster)

Lazeez Jiddan (Webmaster)

@awnlee jawking

Would SOL allow that in a plain text submission without doing anything nefarious?

@bla bla bla@ and #bla bla bla# are not affected by the formatting scripts.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Lazeez Jiddan (Webmaster)

Thanks!

AJ

Ernest Bywater 🚫

@awnlee jawking

One of the reasons not to use symbols like # { [ < is because if the text ever goes through any of the common software used in websites today can often cause problems due to them being used as code delimiters.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Ernest Bywater

One of the reasons not to use symbols like # { [ < is because if the text ever goes through any of the common software used in websites today can often cause problems due to them being used as code delimiters.

Actually, if SOL's okay with it, that's a reason to use it. In the unlikely event that I complete a whole story that's worth reading, it might screw up someone trying to steal the story for posting elsewhere.

AJ

rustyken 🚫

@awnlee jawking

I like them to be in italics as it is then clear.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@rustyken

I like them to be in italics as it is then clear.

Someone used italics in a story I read today. It worked well. But being simple and stupid, I'm wedded to writing in plain text.

AJ

Replies: Switch Blayde

Switch Blayde 🚫

@awnlee jawking

But being simple and stupid, I'm wedded to writing in plain text.

How about using Rich Text Formatting (.rtf). Like .txt but you can use italics.

Replies: awnlee jawking

awnlee jawking 🚫

@Switch Blayde

Does SOL support stories being uploaded in .rtf format? I use the wizard's copy/paste option and I got the impression it only allows plain text.

I'm trying to future-proof the source versions of my stories, and I got the impression .rtf is dying out.

AJ

Replies: Lazeez Jiddan (Webmaster)

Lazeez Jiddan (Webmaster)

@awnlee jawking

I use the wizard's copy/paste option and I got the impression it only allows plain text.

Copy/paste in the wizard uses a standard html < textarea> tag, which doesn't support any type of formatting other than html or plain text.

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Forum: Author Hangout

How to Delimit Telepathic Communication when Writing in Plain Text

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