Direct style communicates exactly what someone said, marking it with quotation marks, dashes, or colons. Indirect style conveys the content of what was said without repeating the exact words, integrating it into the narrator's sentence. Indirect style typically requires changes to pronouns, verb tenses, and deictic elements. The choice depends on whether we want to quote exact words or summarize the content.

In Spanish, direct style is marked with quotation marks, dialogue dashes, or colons depending on the format. Capitalization and punctuation depend on whether the quote is a full sentence or part of one. The verb of speech can precede, follow, or be interspersed inside the quote. Vocatives and gestures can appear next to the verb of speech without breaking the quotation.

Indirect style usually uses a verb of communication followed by "that" to introduce the content. The message is restructured as a subordinate clause, not as a quote. The marks of interrogation and exclamation change because the literal question or exclamation is no longer repeated. The narrator controls the temporal and referential perspective within the message.

In indirect style, pronouns change according to the relation between the narrator, the original speaker, and the referents. Usually the first and second person are shifted to third, because the narrator is recounting what happened. Possessives and determiners may also change to maintain referential clarity. Coherence depends on who tells the story and to whom the message refers.

In indirect style, verb tenses usually backshift if the main verb is in the past, especially with "said" or "asked". This phenomenon is called "tense concord" or "backshifting". In narrative present or with general facts, sometimes the tense is maintained. The choice aims for temporal coherence between the moment of the original communication and the narration.

Deictic elements such as "here", "there", "today", "tomorrow" and "this" change in indirect speech because the temporal and spatial reference often moves to the narrator. "Here" is usually turned into "there" or the place is specified; "today" is usually turned into "that day" or the date is mentioned. "Tomorrow" is usually turned into "the next day". The change is necessary so that the listener understands what each expression refers to.

Questions in indirect style are reformulated as subordinate clauses without question marks, though they remain semantic questions. Partial questions retain the interrogative pronoun (what, who, where, when, how, why). Full questions are usually introduced with "if". The subject and word order adjust to the syntax of a subordinate clause.

In indirect speech, commands are usually reformulated with an infinitive, subjunctive, or periphrase depending on the meaning. The direct imperative is not retained, because the narrator summarizes the intención, not the quotation. With verbs like 'to ask', it is common to use 'that' plus the subjunctive. With 'to order' or 'to command', 'that' plus the subjunctive or a construction with the infinitive is also used.

To go from direct to indirect: identify the verb of communication and make it the main verb; adapt pronouns and possessives according to the referents; adjust the verb tenses if the main verb is in the past; change deictics if the temporal or spatial perspective has changed; and reformulate questions and orders as subordinate clauses. Coherence depends on maintaining clarity about who says what, when, and to what it refers.