Somewhere, Clark barked.

[ladydreamer]

Novelists can't resist including a dog barking in the distance.

This is not something I've ever done… do you guys have barking dogs? What do you do to pass time in the middle of scene? I haven't thought of it, but I think I just have the characters notice stuff.

Comments

[lilacsigil]

I see what he means about using it as a pause, but I'm rather startled that he thinks everyone will hear another human, or a highway or an air conditioner before they hear a barking dog! I'm far more likely to hear a bird or a dog than another human or even a car.

[ladydreamer]

I dunno. I mean how close is this human? How noisy is this air conditioner? Are they standing in the middle of the road when they hear the car? I get the train whistle, but not every town has a train… One could reasonably tailor the random noise. But then again, they could also have the character fiddle with something in their pocket or something for a pause.

I think a car alarm blaring obnoxiously might be a good alternative. I hear those damn things all the time.

[lilacsigil]

I'm glad I don't live in the city! I rarely hear a car alarm, just birds and dogs. Though sometimes the birds are louder than a car alarm, when they're passing through in their thousands during migration.