Snippet Saturday: Dialogue

Today's Snippet Saturday theme is "Dialogue".

I love writing dialogue. Several of my critique partners tell

me that dialogue's my strong point. I particularly love to write

dialogue for very different characters.

In the excerpt below from American Beauty published by Ellora's Cave,

there is Kirsty, the sweet preacher's daughter. Gigi, Kirsty's friend

and coworker who is from Great Britain. And Marshall, Kirsty's gay boss.

I love to scour the internet and books and watch movies so I can 

write authentic, scintillating dialogue. At least that's what I try to do.

When an email popped up on Kirsty's computer screen she
opened it. Clucking her tongue and shaking her head in disgust, she called out
to Gigi, "Lover boy's back and wants two dozen yellow American Beauties
delivered this afternoon."

            Gigi ambled over to the
computer and gazed at it with longing, resting her chin on her palm.
"Bugger! Why can't I find a gorgeous chap to be all dotty and doting over
me so that he sends me roses? Tell him I'm a singleton." She wrestled
Kirsty for the mouse. 

            "You've got to be joking,
right? He's only sent roses to the whole free world. He gives ladies men a bad
name." She wrote up an invoice for the roses and looked on the map to see
where the lucky lady's address was this time. It turned out that the lady of
the week lived near her out in Coral
  Springs.

            "You under the weather,
Kirst? Don't you like to get
roses?" Gigi stared at her as if she had sprouted two more heads. “Sounds
pretty purvey to me.”

            Kirsty turned her back on her
man-hungry friend and pulled two dozen American Beauties out of the
refrigerator and prepped them. Ladies men weren’t interested in women who
weighed in at 181 pounds like she had that morning. She bit down hard on her
lip to stop it from trembling before she turned around to her friend. "Sure,
if the guy's sincere. But not from some two-bit charmer who sends roses to
every pretty girl in town." 

            Gigi pouted, sticking out her
lower lip half a mile "Not every girl in town. He's not sent them to me -
or you..."

            Kirsty
grimaced down at herself as she turned around. Right – pretty. Not.

            "Or to me." Marshall flounced in,
separating them. "I don't want to hear you badmouthing our best customer.
Viva la Don Juan! As long as he's romancing the Ft. Lauderdale
ladies we have no worries about closing our doors. May we find a hundred more
like him.”

            "Well, keep Lothario away
from me. I'll prep his roses but if he ever shows up in person, you two can
duke it out. I want nothing to do with the likes of him." Kirsty turned
her nose up at the mere notion of such a nauseating thought.

            Marshall walked up behind Kirsty and massaged
her shoulders. "You still pining for Mr. Love ‘em and leave ‘em, eh Sunshine?"

            Kirsty scowled, snorted, and
tossed her head. "No way! I don't know what I ever saw in him. I like my
men sweet and kind...and loyal. No ladies men for me thank you very much."
Sweet men reminded her of her new roommate. They didn't come much sweeter. Too
bad he didn't like women as he would be really handsome if he dressed like a
man. She sighed. Wishing wouldn't do her any good. She didn't have a magic wand
to change his sexual orientation. She pricked her finger on a thorn and yelped.
Blood oozed from the tiny cut.

            "What
now?" Marshall
rushed to her side, his expression more concerned than his words.

            She sucked her finger
tasting the salty blood on her tongue. With her mouth full, her words came out
garbled. "That rose bit me. I told you that Mueller man was bad
news." 

            Marshall pulled the first aid kit out from
under the counter, cleansed the wound, and bandaged her finger. "It's just
a little prick..."

            "He’s a big prick.”
Kirsty scowled at the email again. 

            “Ooh, just
the way I love ‘em.” Marshall’s
eyebrows danced jauntily.

* If you'd like to find out more about American Beauty please visit Ellora's Cave. 

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