Arch West, leader of the Frito-Lay team that developed Doritos, died September 20 at age 97. This Sunday’s New York Times ran an op-ed piece on the ubiquitous snack chips’ use as a literary device, offering quotes high and low. Among them was this jaw dropper from Nora Roberts:
They sprawled on the steps of the veranda with a couple of bottles of beer and a bag of Doritos. His flavor of Doritos, Ford noted. With her head tipped back against the post, Cilla laughed so the sound of it poured over the music. And straight into Ford’s gut.
I’ve never read any of Roberts’s more than 200 books, most if not all best sellers, but I did use to freelance edit romance novels. As much a fan of very bad writing as I am of very bad poetry, I kept a notebook of the best of the worst passages.