diff --git a/modules/say/say.sh b/modules/say/say.sh
index 9673824..c08d665 100755
--- a/modules/say/say.sh
+++ b/modules/say/say.sh
@@ -28,38 +28,39 @@ if [[ "$channelName" == "$userName" ]]; then
     firstArg="$1"
     echo "DEBUG say.sh: PM context detected, firstArg='$firstArg'" >> "$log"
 
-    # Check if first argument starts with # (explicit channel)
-    # IRC channels can contain: alphanumeric, -, _, and some special chars
-    if [[ "$firstArg" =~ ^#[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$ ]]; then
-        # Remove # prefix for comparison with configured channels
-        targetChannel="${firstArg#\#}"
+    # Note: bot.sh strips "# " from commands, so #channel becomes just channel name
+    # Check if first argument looks like a channel name (matches configured channels)
+    isConnected=false
+    targetChannel=""
 
-        # Check if the bot is connected to this channel
-        isConnected=false
-        for configuredChannel in "${channels[@]}"; do
-            if [[ "$configuredChannel" == "$targetChannel" ]]; then
-                isConnected=true
-                break
-            fi
-        done
+    for configuredChannel in "${channels[@]}"; do
+        if [[ "$firstArg" == "$configuredChannel" ]]; then
+            isConnected=true
+            targetChannel="$configuredChannel"
+            break
+        fi
+    done
 
-        if [[ "$isConnected" == "true" ]]; then
-            # Send message to specified channel
-            shift
-            if [[ -z "$*" ]]; then
-                msg "$userName" "Please provide a message to say in $firstArg."
-            else
-                msg "$firstArg" "$*"
-            fi
+    if [[ "$isConnected" == "true" ]]; then
+        # First arg is a known channel, send message there
+        shift
+        if [[ -z "$*" ]]; then
+            msg "$userName" "Please provide a message to say in #$targetChannel."
         else
-            # Not connected to that channel
-            msg "$userName" "I am not connected to $firstArg."
+            msg "#$targetChannel" "$*"
         fi
     else
-        # No channel specified or doesn't start with #, broadcast to all channels
-        for configuredChannel in "${channels[@]}"; do
-            msg "#$configuredChannel" "$*"
-        done
+        # Check if first arg looks like it could be a channel name (not in our list)
+        # If it contains no spaces and looks channel-ish, assume user specified wrong channel
+        if [[ "$firstArg" =~ ^[a-zA-Z0-9_-]+$ ]] && [[ ! "$firstArg" =~ [[:space:]] ]]; then
+            # Looks like a channel name but we're not connected
+            msg "$userName" "I am not connected to #$firstArg."
+        else
+            # No channel specified, broadcast to all channels
+            for configuredChannel in "${channels[@]}"; do
+                msg "#$configuredChannel" "$*"
+            done
+        fi
     fi
 else
     # Channel context: just say the message in the current channel