Anyone from Paris, France or know common gestures or colloquialisms?

[Lemon3]

I'm trying to incorporate French colloquialisms (but translated to English) in my dialogue between two teenaged boys and I haven't put in many gestures, but thought those would be nice details.

 

[mccardey]

I'm trying to incorporate French colloquialisms (but translated to English) in my dialogue between two teenaged boys and I haven't put in many gestures, but thought those would be nice details.

You might want to be clearer about which parts of Paris the boys belong to - it's not homogenous (as I'm sure you already know.)

ETA: I can't help you because I don't know Paris, except for the news stories. Sorry. (I think gestures is a lovely idea, though. Young people do use their gestures more than we think.)

 

[Jazz Club]

Do you mean you want to translate them word for word even though they wouldn't necessarily make sense in English? Or do you want to leave them in French and put a rough translation? I don't quite understand the question, sorry.

 

[benbenberi]

Idioms don't translate. If you're writing in English, rather than doing what it sounds like you want to do you're better off just writing appropriate English-language dialog for your characters, using whatever English-language colloquialisms suggest the kind of speech you intend. The reader will understand that they're all "really" speaking in colloquial French, it's just all been translated for them.

As for gestures,I can't help with specifics, but I will note that it's probably a good idea not to overdo the stage directions. When an author inserts in too many gestures and motions their characters can end up fidgeting and twitching and grimacing like fools, which usually is not what the writer wanted. Once or twice in a conversation is plenty. Make it count.

 

[Lemon3]

Idioms don't translate. If you're writing in English, rather than doing what it sounds like you want to do you're better off just writing appropriate English-language dialog for your characters, using whatever English-language colloquialisms suggest the kind of speech you intend. The reader will understand that they're all "really" speaking in colloquial French, it's just all been translated for them.

As for gestures,I can't help with specifics, but I will note that it's probably a good idea not to overdo the stage directions. When an author inserts in too many gestures and motions their characters can end up fidgeting and twitching and grimacing like fools, which usually is not what the writer wanted. Once or twice in a conversation is plenty. Make it count.

Thank you, that's very helpful! And, you're right about adding too many gestures.