Pet Peeve #13 - “Ah,” said he.
This is an extreme pet peeve of mine, but it’s not technically incorrect.
“That’s right,” said he. “Not technically incorrect, indeed.”
A couple years ago, I noticed a lot of writers moving toward “said he” instead of the more common “he said,” and thank full the movement didn’t stick.
When I read (or try to read) a story with “said he” in it, I tend to get a picture of an old man with wild white hair smacking a ruler against the blackboard while he’s trying to teach English. Needless to say, it distracts me from the reading.
Maybe you like writing like that, but always keep in mind your goal is to get and keep as many readers as you can. Things that could possibly distract the reader from the story should be kept to a minimum, and only if you deem them absolutely necessary.
writing, fiction writing, pet peeves, creative writing
March 4th, 2007 at 5:13 am
I must agree. That can get pretty annoying to read. I usually see that in older books though.
March 6th, 2007 at 11:27 pm
Me too, but I’ve seen it in younger writers recently. Argh.