Lines that Stick

We all have them. Bits and pieces of books and movies floating around in our minds -- those lines that stick.

I recently bought the DVD "Stand by Me". Its a favorite of mine, a coming-of-age movie based on a novella called "The Body" by Stephen King. It's filmed largely in Brownsville, part of my old stompin' grounds, so it's close to my heart.

After rewatching it the other night, the lines that stuck were these -- when main character, Gordy LaChance pulls a 45 revolver on gang leader, and all-around bad guy, Ace:

"Suck my fat one, Ace. You cheap, dime store hood."

Gordy cocks the gun (no pun intended), to show he means business, and Ace calls off his gang and leaves.

Gordy's best friend, Chris Chambers says, "Whoever told you you had a fat one, LaChance?"

"Biggest one in four counties," Gordy says.

So, why do those lines stick in my head? Not for their sophisticated aspect, that's for sure. The first line is even a little stilted, almost unrealistic for a 12-year-old to utter. But finding the nerve to say those words, to pull back the hammer on that gun is a major accomplishment for this skinny little kid whose whole world was recently shaken when his big brother died and his parent went catatonic.

In our own RWA chapter, Paty's love scenes are what stick in my head after I read her stories. She's good at writing these scenes.

Alice has a beautifu way of describing the moment one character falls in love with another. (Please forgive me Alice, for not getting this word-for-word, or remembering which books they came from).

It was as if he'd opened a thousand tiny locks with a thousand tiny keys.

Her body shone with a dozen shades of silver.

Anyway, again I apologize if I slaughtered your lines, Alice. But it isn't always the exact words that readers remember, it's the thrust, the idea or image created by the line that stays with us.

Here's a couple more that have stuck with me:

This one by a mle writer (Can't remember his name, the book, "Jane's House" is on loan to Paty, maybe she can help me out). The protagonist is remembering his petite wife, Jane, now dead:

She was a woman. A waif. A wife.

Simple lines, but they painted a poignant picture for me of this man's love and loss.

Nicolas Sparks writes a line about a female character stepping from the shower, towling off then applying lotion to her arms and legs. When I read the line, I thought "Wow, this guy is really in touch with his feminine side. Did he watch his wife do this, or ask her what parts of her body to which she applied lotion?"

And who can forget classic lines like, "Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." and "There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Or Rhett Butler's infamous, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

So, here are my questions to you: How do you think we, as writers, can create the kind of lines that live on in reader's minds after they close the covers of our books? What is it that makes lines stick in your head? And please, share some of your favorite lines.