Boy, do I have to be careful about what I read!
I finally got around to reading Elizabeth George last week, thanks to Terri’s loaning me With No One As Witness, and sure enough, the minute I sat down to work on my own single title proposal, here come those Brits.
Now, I do live with a Brit, and I do watch a lot of Brit TV on PBS and through Netflix, and I have been faithfully watching the Inspector Lynley series and Prime Suspect 42, etc., etc., but it gets pretty bad when my deep South characters keep wanting to use terms like “fortnight” and “have a cuppa” and “flogging lumber”, which sounds like a vaguely pornographic euphemism but actually means “to sell stolen goods.”
And it’s not like I don’t still live in the south, of sorts, though my Tennessee and Alabama family would likely argue that Texas doesn’t count one bit, no sirree, but I realized this week that I don’t actually live in the south. Houston and its surrounding cities are actually quite cosmopolitan, filled with folks from all over who’re sharing their culture with us in a huge collection of stores, restaurants, and places of worship.
I mean, I have a German, Indian, Pakistani, Thai, Chinese, Mexican, Lebanese, Greek, and genuine Italian restaurant within 15 minutes of my home. (Yum!)
So my challenge now is recapturing the cadences of speech and turns of phrase in the region where I grew up. Can I do that short of moving to Sand Mountain, Alabama or Decatur, Georgia?
I hope I can. Besides, there’s a special at the Thai seafood restaurant this week.
I was laughing out loud as I read your post. In my (warped) mind, I can see a quirky character in a book who has a problem coming in and out of accents, from Southern to British, without warning.
And yes, I am easily amused.
Actually, maybe I can work this into the book — the southern cop who wants to be Inspector Lynley…
ummm - a southern cop who drives a mini cooper and wears unlaced tennis shoes - a comedy/action/drama? Could be interesting!