In triple-thinking the post below, I realize I may be getting a bit anal retentive about the grammar, and I certainly am not one who is masterful in the language so why am I complaining?
Further, this thought occurred to me: When writing in first person in particular, there is always voice to be considered. One of the elements of voice is that it would reflect the intelligence, personality, and yes, mastery of language in choice of words. I’ve read too many stories where the poor bumbling detective telling the tale suddenly comes out with scholarly sentences that he in realty would never utter.
Voice is a tricky thing. We have an idea how a character might think and speak, but then, we are using our own vocabulary and skill–or lack thereof–and knowledge of folks other than ourselves to endow our character with his own identity. Then too, as long as it seems "in voice," anything goes, just as he must behave "in character," even when he isn’t there is an obviousness about the stepping out.
Interesting lesson here; on what we can and can’t get away with.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology