Judging from this fanwriter's specific tics I'd guess she's from Appalachia

[conuly]

The trouble is that her* characters are English.

Now, most people with the needs washed construction have no idea it's regional, and I can see how both "come with" and the plural prounouns who all and what all snuck in there without notice (but not any form of a plural you, so I guess she caught that one herself!) - but I'm a little surprised that nobody ever told her that "drug" is a nonstandard past tense.

(Why don't people with "needs washed" ever recognize that it's a regionalism?)

* Well, you know what I mean. The characters in the fanfic.

Comments

[ethelmay]

Speaking of "snuck in there," I am currently reading a nonfiction book about the Luddites (early 19C England), and the American author uses words like "snuck" that strike me as out of place, but I can't quite get at why. I think I would be fine with him saying "snuck" in a lecture on the subject. I don't know if I am expecting him to be more formal, or less Californian, or what.

"Come with" I think of as German-influenced, or Norwegian (both of which have similar constructions). "Needs washed" is Scots-Irish, it seems, which I didn't expect. (Per the Yale Grammatical Diversity Project.)

[conuly]

It was shocking to me to find out as an adult that "sneaked" is standard and "snuck" is the newer form.

[lizvogel]

I just learned this... um, now, actually.

[conuly]

Ditto for dived/dove. I do not like that regular form!

[lizvogel]

TIL that I don't know English as well as I thought, apparently. ;-)

I'm sorry, but "sneaked" and "dived" just sound Wrong.

[conuly]

No argument here!