'Like' and 'As if'

I confess I didn't know there was a technical difference or specific place to use one over the other. From googling I see there appears to be - noun follows like, and verb follows as if - but I can't say it's ever bothered me too much when reading either narrative or dialogue.

I use whichever fits in context and with the narrative style.

He jumped up and down like a demented grasshopper. (Noun follows like)

He jumped up and down as if there were ants in his pants. (Verb follows as if))

Tinman said:

How strict are you when using these two in analogies and comparisons? I'm editing a fiction novel with multiple viewpoints and I almost always use 'like'. I know technically when to use 'as if', and sometimes I struggle not to use it, but 'like' seems to fit more often, and when I try to correctly place 'as if' into a character's thoughts or dialogue, it always jumps out at me. Thanks!!!

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In thoughts and dialogue, you wouldn't maintain the distinction between "like" and "as if" unless it's natural for your character to do so. I doubt most of the characters I write are aware of the difference.

Like: similar to
As if: as it would be if
I think there's quite a bit of difference between the two; although they often approach each other.

With "like," aren't you setting up your reader to expect a simile?

That is, I vote for Buffy's answer.

TellMeAStory said:

With "like," aren't you setting up your reader to expect a simile?

That is, I vote for Buffy's answer.

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I sure hope not. "Like" is used far more commonly outside of sililies, and "as" also makes the right phrase a simile.

Tinman said:

How strict are you when using these two in analogies and comparisons? I'm editing a fiction novel with multiple viewpoints and I almost always use 'like'. I know technically when to use 'as if', and sometimes I struggle not to use it, but 'like' seems to fit more often, and when I try to correctly place 'as if' into a character's thoughts or dialogue, it always jumps out at me. Thanks!!!

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Use the one your characters would use, not the one you would use, and make sure that's the kind of person your character really is.

This is one of those things that, except in formal writing, I think should just be down to voice. Use the one that sounds most appropriate for the POV, regardless of what the "rules" say.

Third and omniscient are both POVs. Don't look for complications that aren't there.

Tinman said:

Your answers beg another question, though: What if the story is written in third omniscient, and the line isn't from one of the characters' POV, but from an omniscient narrator's POV? Would you be strict about usage then?

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While I might not expect a character to know the difference, I would expect the author to know, so when writing outside the POV of a character, you should always be grammatically correct.

Actually, I believe this applies to any third-person narrative regardless of POV (omni or third-limited). After all, don't we expect correct spelling and punctuation in a narrative? I see no reason why grammar should be held to a lesser standard.

Unless the author means it to be, an omniscient narrator is not the author.

Even an omniscient narrator has a voice. Grab any two different authors' works in omni, and you'll see a distinctly different use of language.

onesecondglance said:

Unless the author means it to be, an omniscient narrator is not the author.

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True. However, in my reading experience, it's authorial intrusion of the worst kind when an omniscient narrator continually inserts his or her colloquial diction into every character's thoughts and dialog.

I can't believe you honestly think there is any answer other than - as informal as the writer chooses to make him.

Tinman said:

How informal can an unknown, unnamed omniscient narrator be? I know there's no rule, only opinions. I was just curious about the consensus.

Thanks!!!

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Tinman said:

I was always taught that it's third person omniscient, though I suppose omniscient always has to be third person, so why not just say omniscient POV? When I wrote third omniscient I just meant omniscient.

As always, glad to receive your input, Bufty!!!

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Me too. I was taught that third person is when "I" is not telling the story, where all characters are referred to by their proper names or he/she/they etc., regardless of whether it's limited, objective, or omniscient.

Omniscient is when the narrator knows all, regardless of whether it is third or first person (first person omniscient is rare, but it can be done: Galapagos, The Book Thief, and The Lovely Bones are examples of this).

As for the "as if" versus "like" thing, technically like is a preposition, and as is a conjunction. But people have been using like as if it were a conjunction for quite some time.

She stared at him, as if he'd grown a second head.

She stared at him, like he'd grown a second head.

Technically, you're only supposed to use like when no verb follows.

He swam like a dolphin in the water.

But whether or not it's strictly grammatical, most people talk this way. To me, it's a matter of whether or not your use of like instead of as fits the narrative voice you're using. It certainly should be considered for first or limited third, but sometimes omni narrators are less formal too.

I'm sure one's editor will weigh in on whether they think it fits or not too.

Jamesaritchie said:

I sure hope not. "Like" is used far more commonly outside of sililies, and "as" also makes the right phrase a simile.

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Similes use both "like" and "as."

Roxxsmom said:

She stared at him, as if he'd grown a second head.

She stared at him, like he'd grown a second head.

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The second one is definitely the more colloquial of the two. But there shouldn't be a comma in either of them.

BethS said:

The second one is definitely the more colloquial of the two. But there shouldn't be a comma in either of them.

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I don't normally use commas there myself, but when the site I looked the rule up on said that "as" was a conjunction, and like was often informally used like one, I assumed it would be more proper to use a comma if there was an independent clause after said conjunction.

"He'd grown a second head" is an independent clause, so if you're using "like" as a conjunction, wouldn't a comma need to be there?

It made me worry that the way I'd been writing it was wrong after all, even for the colloquial use of like there.

Roxxsmom said:

I don't normally use commas there myself, but when the site I looked the rule up on said that "as" was a conjunction, and like was often informally used like one, I assumed it would be more proper to use a comma if there was an independent clause after said conjunction.

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The rule you cite is for coordinating conjunctions (and, or, nor, but, for, yet, so) separating main clauses.

When "as" or "as if" is a correlative conjunction, the comma rule doesn't necessarily apply. I think your inclination to avoid the comma there is sound.

Roxxsmom said:

As for the "as if" versus "like" thing, technically like is a preposition, and as is a conjunction. But people have been using like as if it were a conjunction for quite some time.

But whether or not it's strictly grammatical, most people talk this way.

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Yes, but people say "ain't" and "irregardless" and use "was" when the subjunctive "were" would be proper, etc. Should we disregard good grammar simply because "people talk this way?"

In cases where the narrator is a character, narration is essentially dialogue; hence, a certain amount of leeway is acceptable. But I don't think I've ever read a story narrated by a non-character where bad grammar was allowed.

Regarding "like" vs "as is": at any given time one will be proper and the other will not, depending on the sentence. In non-character narration, being grammatically incorrect is unacceptable.

Note: I believe a lot people forgive the misuse of "like" and "as if" simply because they don't know there's a difference. Indeed, someone above said they didn't even know it was an issue. As Roxxsmom said, "people talk this way," and as such, people don't recognize the error when they read it.