I use reporting-clauses. Some examples, he said, remarked, stated, declaimed, proclaimed, declared, opined, agreed, affirmed, confirmed, claimed, stressed, emphasized etc.
Do you think reporting-clauses are necessary. Do they work better in some genres?
I agree that too many instances of "she said" or "he said" can be a unnecessary. Having said that, when reading some novels I've had to go back over a page of dialogue to work out which character is supposed to be speaking.
Phew! Astor has saved me from being the first to be contrary...
Isn't the significant issue the length of dialogue and number of participants?
Personally I take what might be a bit of an extreme view opposite to most of those above.
I really don't like frequent use of the same word - and "said" is high up on my "don't like" list. Okay, I am probably extreme, but I think that it shows laziness, lack of imagination or even lack of interest (of the "can't be bothered" kind),
To me so much more of what is going on can be suggested by the use of a whole range of alternatives - from single words to (usually short) phrases or clauses.
To take an example. I too would very rarely use "stated". Sometimes though someone will make a statement - even if this is not really an appropriate way for them to speak in the context. "Stated" can have a finality about it which "said" does not have - at least; not on its own.
I also find that, largely because I use fairly long pieces of dialogue and tend to carry action forward on them, I need to use tags to help me (if not the reader) keep track of who is saying what and where. I have to accept that readers might not like either the length of dialogue or this method of maintaining (some) clarity - but it is just part of my individual style.
Back at repetition, or even multiple use of the same words, I try to avoid this.
If I have describes a bush as green I will always attempt to apply a different description if I need to describe it again - except where "green bush" is a specific marker that locates something or specifically differentiates the bush from any other.
I even try to avoid repeating a character's name in the same way - at least within the same page. I will alternate between "Fred" and "he" if I cannot conjure any other device when I need to keep tagging the same person.
This is all based firstly on the training I had in school - where work would be marked with "LAZY!" if I contravened the "rules". Then it is based on the (possibly resulting) fact that if I find myself reading the same word over-and-over I feel that I am listening to a woodpecker.
I hope this different view is useful.
David
I remember in my teens when all my stories were of the 'he said', 'she said' variety, with the occasional 'he replied' thrown in to break the monotomy.
But over the years, I learnt that if you broke the sentence up with the character doing something in the middle, it not only relieves the problem of the reporting clause, it adds 'movement' to your story too.
Example:-
Instead of;
"So, what do you think?" Simon asked.
Try something like,
"So," Simon ran a weary hand across his brow. "What do you think?"