Erotica author, aka Elspeth Potter, on Writing from the Inside

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Alas, Poor Wallis

I'm on vacation until the new year, but I set up some blog posts anyway. There will be a slight lack of introspective musings on writing and genre in them, but hopefully some entertainment value.

Behold one of the most amusing examples of dialogue I have ever read.

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"Wallis," said Maturin. "I am happy to find you here. How is your penis?" At their last meeting he had carried out an operation on his colleague in political and military intelligence, who wished to pass for a Jew: the operation, on an adult, had proved by no means so trifling as he or Wallis had supposed, and Stephen had long been haunted by thoughts of gangrene.

Mr. Wallis's delighted smile changed to gravity; a look of sincere self-commiseration came over his face, and he said that it had come along pretty well, but he feared it would never be quite the member it was.

--Patrick O'Brian, The Fortune of War

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