: Is it bad practice to use "ahem" in dialogue? I'm writing a bit of fiction and what i have is an uncomfortable character who is clearing his throat before speaking. Is it better to say so

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It honestly depends on the writing style.
Does the character clear their throat a lot? If so, I'd suggest writing out, "ahem." If not, I would go with, "[character] cleared their throat."
If your character clears their throat a lot, a good example of how to write that would be Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Professor Umbridge repeatedly clears her throat for attention and goes, "hem-hem." This incorporates her character's style as well as how often she clears her throat.
I hope this helped!

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I personally would use the first option, but either would work. I think that some readers would read the dialogue, and instead of substituting ahem with a small cough or something, might just read it as ahem. Maybe every few times combine the two into:

"Ahem, " he cleared his throat, "I'm not sure. "

Just to make it clear that ahem = throat clearing.

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