I uh, I'm not... I'm not uhhh entirely sure that you'd, you'd enjoy the works of Da.. of David Mamet very uh much. ;o)

This is a great article and you're right, we don't write as we speak, that space between how real people speak and how characters speak (and all online writing is character) is the bane of a creative writer's life in my opinion. I think it's the skill hardest to teach and dialogue is very very hard.

Learning to capture the essence of intention without getting dragged into the minutiae of flawed communication is a minefield - but it's a fun one to dance around in sometime trying not to blow up. Thanks for an excellent article :o)