A reader, on the matter of ‘er’:
“Mr Derb—Could you see to it they also do away with, ‘indeed’? I’d really, really appreciate that.”
Actually, this sort of thing touches a raw nerve with all writers. We all have our little mannerisms, and are generally aware of them. I know I use “in fact” and “though” too much–not to mention that “actually.” I find Paul Johnson one of the most readable of authors, but his “of courses” get on my nerves. And so on. When you have to turn out 1,200 words by noon, though, you can’t always monitor yourself.
I think I can detect some political flavor in these mannerisms, too. I’m willing to bet that a diligent analysis would show that conservative writers say “indeed” much more than liberal ones do. I’m not sure why I am willing to bet that, but I am.
(Roger Kimball claims that he never lets an issue of The New Criterion go to the printer without at least one “Alas!” in it.)