Thread: Said she vs. she said.

This is just a quick question that I was hoping someone could shed some light on.

Is there a difference (besides the obvious) between the following:

"What a silly question," she said.
"What a silly question," said she.

Is it just the difference between the English and American way of writing or is there more to it than that?
I would like to know this because I'm having a hard time choosing which one to go for.

I would greatly appreciate a good answer.

both correct but means different things

she said is the correct because a correct grammatical sentence in English comprises a subject, verb, and complement, in this order.
for example:
she, said, something.

and so it is correct for a short sentence to end with a verb in this case 'said' and the emphasis on WHAT she said

''said she'' is usually hinting, indicating that she might be either talking or saying it to herself, or saying it in particular way.
like this:
said she (to herself.) or said she (funnily) and so the emphasis is not on what she said but on HOW she said it.

in English a sentence always ends with a complement or verb but never a subject.
I hope this helps.

"What a silly question," she said. Is modern usage.

"What a silly question," said she. Is grammatically correct but somewhat archaic.

See Star Trek: To boldly go where no man has gone before... should really be To go boldly where no man has been before, but to use the latter in everyday speech would invite a lot of "Oo er, get him" comments.

So just to make sure;

It's okay if I only use: she said, or name of my character said in my book?

I've read several books where they either used said she or she said.

Either is correct. It's a matter of taste. No one will shoot you down for using either, but '(insert character name here) said' is more common nowadays.

I'm not sure if what I'm about to suggest is technically "correct" or just sounds easy on the ear. I would never close dialogue with "said he." I would always use "he said." However, I think when using the person's name to identify the speaker, it can work either way.

"I think it works either way," John said.
"I think it does, too," said Bill.

Nacian, I have to say that I disagree. I have never once seen that use intended for "said she."

I have always found it to be an archaic construction, as others here have mentioned. Use it to sound pompous, old fashioned, or to make a rhyme in bad poetry -- and that's about it. According to current fashion, at least.

That's what she said!

...Sorry. I'll shut up now.

Originally Posted by Bilston Blue

I'm not sure if what I'm about to suggest is technically "correct" or just sounds easy on the ear. I would never close dialogue with "said he." I would always use "he said." However, I think when using the person's name to identify the speaker, it can work either way.

"I think it works either way," John said.
"I think it does, too," said Bill.

Seconded. Using the names means that either is valid in modern usage.