Dick Lochte wrote:
>I'm also weary of the "said" thing.
"You're right, it's not new advice, but it still bears
repeating," I insist adamantly.
James Blish quoted Walcott Gibbs, railing against said
substitutes back in the forties: "Word 'said' is OK. Efforts
to avoid repetition by inserting
'grunted,' 'snorted,' etc., are waste motion and offend the
pure in heart." By way of illustration, Blish himself came up
with my favorite said substitute:
"'Good morning,' he pole-vaulted." That should cure anybody
of the habit. Legitimate said substitutes might include tones
of voice such as: screamed, whispered, farted, etc. And
obviously modifiers should be strenuously avoided.
BobT
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