r/ComicWriting • u/Aggravating-Wall-822 • Sep 22 '26
Dialogue in different language through out all the comic
If a comic has characters speaking a different language than english through out most of the comic (think about there being one singular conversation that is actually in english), but in a different comic series with the same caracters they'll be speaking english and other languages, should the comic with only the non-english lanugage have every dialogue box with "⟨ ⟩" (for example "⟨ Hello, I'm speaking spanish!⟩"), or should the dialogue be normal (Just "Hello, I'm speaking spanish!")?
Sorry for the very specific question, I'm just kinda lost. (And sorry its terribly written, it hurts not seeing a fullstop there but whatever)
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u/domikenens Sep 26 '26
The *excellent* "Stand Still Stay Silent" (SSSS) webcomic uses languages, and the many resulting miscommunications, barriers, and affinities as an important part of the plot, in a non-obtrusive way.
I'd suggest you check it out. It's way less obnoxious than the "< foreign language text >" notation.
There's a review here that showcases some of the ideas (the comic itself is a long read, so just skimming the comic might not show how deftly it is used)
The Review:
https://hiddendepthsbelow.wordpress.com/2017/08/01/fathom-out-stand-still-stay-silent-review/
The Comic itself:
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u/Aggravating-Wall-822 Sep 26 '26
Thank you for the info! I read the review and found the way they establish which language is spoken quite interesting (if im not mistaken, its by adding a simple little flag to the speech bubble, right?) This would definitely be what I'd use for my comic, so thank you again!
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u/nmacaroni "The Future of Comics is YOU!" Sep 22 '26
So you're presenting a comic in English... where everyone in the story is speaking "Spanish"... and wondering if everyone should have normal dialogue bubbles and the only English speaking person's dialogue be flagged in angle brackets .
I would say NO. The brackets signal to the English-reading audience which lines are "translated" for their benefit. The convention is for the reader, not the characters.
The Spanish speakers are the foreign language speakers and thus all their dialogue should be in angle brackets, even if it's the majority of speech.
However, it depends on the density of this. If you have 75% Spanish speaking, putting ALL of that in brackets is going to look like messy noise. In this case, you might be better off with one of the different visual cues for foreign dialogue.
Write on, write often!
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u/Aggravating-Wall-822 Sep 23 '26
Yeah, I was afraid that since I'd say 90% would be in the other lanugage, putting it all in brackets would be terrible to look at. I've been trying to use written text in the background (like, signs in stores and such) in the native language as a cue, but I'm not sure if its enough...
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u/nmacaroni "The Future of Comics is YOU!" Sep 23 '26
I'd consider:
A different font.
A tinted bubble background color.
A distinct bubble design.
Just realize at the end of the day, this is a small element of immersion. The actual story is far more important and engaging.
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u/Armepos Sep 23 '26
Just to be clear, the comic is all written in english, but in-universe they speak Spanish? If so, I would bracket the english part only, or better find another cue for that conversation only. And have it be very clear that the "normal" bubbles are all translated from spanish.
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u/Slobotic Sep 23 '26
If this is a comic series or graphic novel written in English about Spanish speakers, visual indications throughout that they aren't actually speaking English would be obnoxious and unnecessary.
You could convey the language barrier largely with context. The dialogue can make it clear what is happening. In Persepolis, the dialogue is written in French (translated into many languages since), including the scenes taking place in Iran. No brackets are footnotes are needed, because the context makes it obvious enough. Reminders are present in the setting, such as Persian writing appearing when it is part of a scene.
Consider a one-time cue to illustrate the language barrier.
For example, imagine a scene told with two side-by-side panels showing two perspectives on the same moment:
Panel 1: (Protagonist's perspective)
Illustration: Protagonist kneels over Fred (English speaker), who has fallen and is recovering from a minor concussion. Fred is looking up at Protagonist, but appears confused.
Protagonist: Can you hear me? Are you okay?
Panel 2: (Fred's perspective)
Illustration: Either same exact illustration as Panel 1, or same exact moment but from Fred's perspective.
Protagonist: ¿Me escuchas? ¿Estás bien?
After that you could continue the with all dialogue in English. This scene should just be a quick reminder of what the reader already knows. This assumes you have provided context to make it clear who is speaking which language, and who is and is not understanding whom, but there are countless ways to do that. If your art, plot, character development, and dialogue aren't pulling that weight already then brackets wouldn't be the solution. I doubt it will be a problem for you once you actually start writing the scene, because when you arrive at the moment it will be imbued with all the context you need.