I've read books that have swear words in them. Is it alright to put these words in the book? Who here puts them in? Which ones are okay and which aren't?
Profanity
- Thread starter DwayneA
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If they are used properly, they are fine. If art imitates life, then we recognize that some people use profanity while others do not. If it rings true for the character, then it does its job.
You can use whatever words you want as long as they're the right ones. If your character says fuck every other fucking word, then transcribe him or her true-to-character.
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I have a friend like that. As it turns out, the f-bomb can be used as a verb, noun, adjective and adverb. We tallied him once and found ten per minute. If I wrote him as a character, I'd have to include his diction.
It may also be used as an exclamation, primarily during injury.
It may also be used as an exclamation, primarily during injury.
Personally (perhaps the convent boarding school upbringing had its affect after all!) I don't usually swear in real life, but my characters do when the mood strikes them, if they are the sort of people who would be inclined to. I don't litter my book with profanity, but the occasional swear word makes it sound more authentic to me.
You might decide whether your particular character can benefit from the addition - become more "real" e.g. - or whether it sounds gratuitous and forced.
As for which ones are okay and which aren't - well, some may disagree with me, but I do not like the C word. I keep it to the usual everyday profanity.
You might decide whether your particular character can benefit from the addition - become more "real" e.g. - or whether it sounds gratuitous and forced.
As for which ones are okay and which aren't - well, some may disagree with me, but I do not like the C word. I keep it to the usual everyday profanity.
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Pretty much what everyone else has said. This is one of the first questions I asked when I came to this board.
Interesting (maybe) sidenote: I find swear words to be much more powerful and jarring when followed with a period instead of an exclamation mark.
Interesting (maybe) sidenote: I find swear words to be much more powerful and jarring when followed with a period instead of an exclamation mark.
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And I would think that much swearing in a novel would become tedious.
I swear in real life. In my writing, not so much. In fact, it always feels and sounds awkward to my ear, so my writing has very little swearing and it's only used to emphasize a character's mood.
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In my last story, one of my characters was a Georgian (the country, not the state). My girlfriend read it. Her grandfather was Georgian. She took a pen and started added a "fuck" (in its various forms) about every other word for his angry scenes.
Swearing in print tends to have more impact than swearing in real life. It usually reads better if you take the frequency of use down a couple of notches.
Agreed. In narrative, you have to make every word count. In dialogue, read it aloud to hear how it sounds.
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I thought the exact same thing. hehe.
I use the right word. My last wip has a mother in it who swears like a truck driver when she is, let's just say RELAPSING. Sometimes she felt like a nut...sometimes she didn't.
Use the swear words when they are called for. Don't use them extraneously.
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Some people only curse when drinking. Bit o' trivia. I, myself, do not. When the bag breaks and my diet pepsi bottle rolls under the car, however, something might slip.
Ha! That's awesome! That would make a great coffee table book.I have a book called An Encyclopedia of Swearing. It's awesome. It tells the origin and historical use of every English curse. Every writer needs one...Did I sound too much like a commercial there?
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I think it lends to the reality of the character, if it flows when you're writing, then it stands a chance of flowing when it's being read.
In my book, the antagonist is an elderly scholar with polished behavior and he uses the 'F -word' just once. He then apologises to the lady present in the scene(the protagonist )
Personally, I try to avoid profanity in my work as much as possible but if the character and the situation demands, I don' see any problem.
Personally, I try to avoid profanity in my work as much as possible but if the character and the situation demands, I don' see any problem.
Very location dependent, in Ireland the use of the word “fuck” and its various directives is so common that it has lost its intent and impact as a swear word.
“On the way to work this morning I saw Bill and Trish actually talking to one another.”
“No fucking way!”
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If you're writing Sci-Fi or Fantasy, you get to make your own swear words up. Futz! By Odin's codpiece! You disgusting piece of flubber!
The c-word is the slang word for female genitalia. If you can't guess, then you wouldn't ever use it anyway. Despite the fact female genitalia is a fascinatingly wonderful invention, use of the c-word is still regarded as a big social no-no and I very rarely see it in novels.
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The c-word is the slang word for female genitalia. If you can't guess, then you wouldn't ever use it anyway. Despite the fact female genitalia is a fascinatingly wonderful invention, use of the c-word is still regarded as a big social no-no and I very rarely see it in novels.
-Derek
That's very nearly one of my real fave curse's.
Actually I use Odin's ringpiece, Thor's foreskin and Hel's knickers.
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