“Fixing to…” at the beginning of a sentence

Question

Use of "Fixing to ..." at the beginning of a sentence is prevalent in southern USA. Is this the right usage? And is this only a southern US thing?

Examples:

Fixing to call her. Fixing dinner. Fixing to leave the house.

Answer 1

Is this the right usage?

For "fixing to (do something)", that depends. If I am writing an academic paper or a business-related email, then no. If I am in Boston, or Chicago, or San Francisco and I don't want to sound out of place, then no. But if I am living in the South of the US and I am having casual conversation, then "fixing to" might often be just the right word to use.

"Fixing dinner" is much more prevalent than "fixing to (do something)". I say this because I don't think it would feel out of place in any of the (northern and eastern US) places I have lived (though I would imagine it would get the heaviest use in the South). Still, I probably wouldn't personally use that phrase in formal, written English.

Answer 2

"Fixing to ..." is common usage in the southern US, meaning "about to" or "preparing to" do something, but rarely if ever at the beginning of a sentence. Perhaps in answer to a question:

"Whatcha doin', Pa?"

"Fixin' to hunt me some possum."

Answer 3

It's also appeared in song titles, most notably I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die

I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die is the second album by the influential San Francisco psychedelic rock group Country Joe and the Fish, released in 1967. The title track remains one of the most popular Vietnam protest songs from the 1960s and originally appeared in a 1965 7" EP titled Rag Baby: Songs of Opposition.