Ah Have Uh Question Uh-Bout Di-uh-lects
I understand that when writing a novel about a specific region of the world, it’s irritating to others to read it in the dialect of that particular area. When writing about a specific region set centuries ago, however, I’m unsure how best to present it. I get the feeling that writing about 18th century London in a modern tone would have the same anachronistic effect as going to a Renaissance festival and seeing one of the peasants wearing a watch. On the other hand, I don’t want to resort to using the language of that time and confusing a modern audience.What’s a good way to approach this to still give the feel of the time period? Write with a modern style but still throw in words and phrases of the time? Any advice would be appreciated.
Advice from the Evil Editor here.
Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our 
