I'm trying to find a contemporary crime writer who's made good writing in a colloquial style -- something along the lines of the way Elmore Leonard does, only in first person. Any suggestions? I'm not talking about colloquial in the sense of using a character voice, I mean someone who writes the way that people really talk. Anybody got any suggestions?

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Try Andrew Vachss, about as urban and hard ass as you can get. (Shela). Stephen Rifkin, (The Murderer Vine.) Not a crime writer but a writer who writes about ordinary people, ordinary life, Raymond Carver, (What's in Alaska?).
I'm not looking for hardboiled cinema-verite' type stuff, but a specific 'voice' -- like, instead of writing:

"It was a dark and stormy night."

the author writes

"Man, that rain is really coming down."

There must be a stylistic name for this kind of thing... wish I knew what it was.

MK
www.minervakoenig.com
Maybe Richard Price (Lush Life)?
Good example.
That book pissed me off. The prologue was great, then it just degenerated (my reader's opinion only).
OK, I went ahead and posted an example on my blog:

http://www.minervakoenig.com/2010/02/voice.html

Please read and comment if you are so moved...

Thanks -- MK
Works pretty well for me. I got sort of lost on where everybody was at one point. I take it the POV person is female. Some of the detail wouldn't work for a male.
Check out Haruki Murakami got a good example of conversational writing. The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is a great example. Also John Burdett's Bangkok series.
Try some Denis Johnson.
Not a crime writer, but Jim Butcher uses the first person in his series of books about a wizard for hire, Harry Dresden.
I write first person, present tense, perhaps in the manner you describe. Here's a quick look.
Yeah, that's what I'm talking about! What do you call that style of writing? Does it have a name?

My local liberry doesn't have any of your books, so it looks like I'll be buying and donating at least one. Thanks!

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