malena2006
New Member
My characters are cosmopolitan, polyglot and my story takes place in different countries, therefore I tend to include terms and full sentences in foreign languages. The protagonist and her family use a sort of personal lingo that mixes word from several languages. To me, raised in a bilingual home, it seems natural, but I know it might be confusing to readers, and yet I feel it provides flavor, identifies characters through their speech, and solves the problem of having all characters using the same voice. Am I wrong?
Do foreign words always need translation? What about song lyrics? In the novel I am reading the author includes phrases (not sentences) in Italian, and does not translate or even explain.
I was told I should write foreign word/sentence in italics, and then follow them with the translation among parentheses. Is that correct?
Do foreign words always need translation? What about song lyrics? In the novel I am reading the author includes phrases (not sentences) in Italian, and does not translate or even explain.
I was told I should write foreign word/sentence in italics, and then follow them with the translation among parentheses. Is that correct?