# Sound Effects (onomonopia?) Question



## gewitter (Mar 10, 2011)

I need help figuring out sounds for a comic that I'm doing the art for, and I figured that writing down sounds would concern the writing forums more than the art forums (if not, please direct me to the right place). I'm just wondering what words I should use to describe certain sounds? Specifically the sound a person would make when spitting, and the sound a straight edge razor might make when it is flipped open. You can also just give me fun sounds if you feel like it.

tl;dr need words to describe a spitting sound and knife unsheathing sound

thanks


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## Delta (Mar 10, 2011)

Make the sounds with your mouth or look up the sound effects you want and jot them down the way they sound. The cool thing about sounds in comic writing is that there's no right way to spell a sound effect because the subject isn't a word - its a sound. 
Sound of someone spitting? "Pff" 
Sound of a razor being flipped open? "Thck" or "Fffk" 
Just make the sound, dissect it and right down how it sounds.


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## TakeWalker (Mar 10, 2011)

Agreeing with the no right way thing. But if you want examples, try reading actual comics and see what they've come up with.


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## foozzzball (Mar 10, 2011)

Onomatopoeia is a BITCH. 

I would go with:

Spit - 'Spk!' / 'Spak!'

Razor flippy - 'Flick!' 

(Flick is a valid noise. Srsly.)


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## M. LeRenard (Mar 10, 2011)

"Ptooie" and "Fwip".
Nah... I don't really know.  Like everybody else is saying, just make it up.  I think as long as you don't write something like "SPIT!" people won't question it.


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## foozzzball (Mar 10, 2011)

It can be highly contextual. In a funny thing 'Ptooie!' is like, _essential_.


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## MaxwellShack (Mar 10, 2011)

Personally for the sound of a blade, I like Wolverine's blades, "snikt." As far as the spitting, mostly what I've seen is "ptoo."


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## gewitter (Mar 10, 2011)

Thanks everybody, 
I guess I'm gonna sit around and make some sounds to myself
's gonna be fun
...
pfftoo
and
whssk
maybe...


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## RailRide (Mar 11, 2011)

Might find some ideas here

Or at least a chuckle or two 

---PCJ


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## Lobar (Mar 11, 2011)

call up that guy from Police Academy and ask him


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## Kadrian (Mar 13, 2011)

Pick up a few books by the late, great cartoonist Don Martin.  You'll love his work and his "sound effects" were fantastic.


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## Volkodav (Mar 13, 2011)

Imo the sound of a switchblade is "shhk"
idk what a straight-edge razor sounds like cause ive never held one


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## Kadrian (Mar 13, 2011)

Switchblades are more like k-CHIK!  Straight razors never made any sound when I opened them, but I suppose ssnik! would work.


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## Murphy Z (Mar 14, 2011)

"Ptoo" to spit and "Snik" for a razor, unless Marvel has it copyrighted, Bub.


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