Make Your Editor Cry: Pronouns (his, her / their, he, she / they)
Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns.
Examples are: I, me, he, she, herself, you, it, one, that, they, each, few, many, who, whoever, whose, someone, everybody, etc.
The most commonly used pronouns in fiction are he, she, and they.
Alternate he or she with the proper names of the characters for better flow as well as clarity. ALWAYS read your manuscript aloud or have someone read it aloud while you listen to check that the narrative flows and has the proper pace.
Likewise, be careful not to overuse pronouns.
If it is at all unclear who is speaking, or from whose POV the scene is written, replace the pronoun with the proper name of the character.
If it is at all unclear what proper noun place or thing the pronoun refers to, replace the pronoun with the proper noun place or thing name.
Gregg Bridgeman is the Editor-in-Chief at Olivia Kimbrell Press. He is husband to best-selling Christian author Hallee Bridgeman and parent to three. He continues to proudly serve in the US Armed Forces and has done so in either an active or reserve capacity for more than twenty years as an airborne and air assault qualified paratrooper, earning a Bronze Star for his service. Most importantly, he was ordained in October of 2001 after surrendering his life to Christ decades earlier.
