October 19, 2010

Writing Dialogue - More Authors to Study Who Are Masters of Dialogue: Sue Grafton

Couple of years ago (wow, I've been blogging here for awhile now!), I wrote about my search for authors who have mastered the art of writing great conversation.  Dialogue. 

I admit it -- setting, plot, characters: they're all with their hurdles.  Dialogue downright intimidates me. 

So, imagine my surprise when I'm reading Sue Grafton's latest, U is for Undertow, and realize just how much of the story is (you guessed it) dialogue.  Great stuff, too.  I surf around on Grafton as a writer, seeking to learn more about her writing - besides the ABC series, I've read all of them just like you. 

Voila.  Grafton worked in Hollywood, writing screenplays before she decided to write mysteries as a way to escape the Hollywood system.  Good for her, great for us.

So, in addition to those authors that I listed in September 2008 as authors who have mastered the art of writing dialogue, I must add Sue Grafton.  Wow, she's great at it. 

(And Sue Grafton's got a really cool web site to explore, too, if you're interested.)

UPDATE:  I've finished U is for Undertow, and I think it's the best yet in Grafton's series.  If you're interested in my take on why U is worth the read (very), check out my review at Amazon. 

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