Swearing in books

[Joonbug1]

Originally Posted by mr ploppy

The best line in the TV version of Repo-Man was "Flip you, motherflipper, you flipping flip."

Best version of the best movie of all time. So happy you brought this reference up!
(BTW, they dub over "MF" with "melonfarmer" )
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...&postcount=508

BTW, on the swearing in books topic: I rather like it if the story or characters call for its usage.
The OP said he wrote about soldiers and knew soldiers swear around each other a lot, but he chose to censor his own writing to be kinder to readers. Sounds like compromising the reality of how you know them to act in real life, bro. If that is fine with you, then it's OK, but if your intention was to depict the reality as you know it to be, then a writer should not have to fear reader backlash for being true to the material. It just weeds out the readers who would not appreciate your work.

[mattlynn]

I tend to agree with xg4. Too much of the f-word is just lazy writing, just like it is lazy speaking. I actually don't use sodding all that much....I use a variety of words. Interesting debate tho....

[VydorScope]

Yea, I wonder about this myself at times. I have one character in one of my books that I know has a bad potty mouth, but instead of filling his dialog with

Bob said, "F-you! you s-o-b! I am going to shove a stick up your a.. till s--- comes out your f'ing nostrils you stupid m-f" (can you tell I grew up in Jersey? LOL)

This does little to advance the plot, but it does show some degree of Bob's character.

Something "What spilled out of Bob's mouth next was the most vile language I have ever heard from an officer...," does essentially the same thing but allows me to keep a broader audience. Its a compromise, but one I am willing to make to keep the character and the language. I avoid using polite curses like "Oh fudge!" (unless it fits the character, which I have yet to write one that it would)

Now if its something like taking a god's name in vain, but it is a god I made up for my story, I just write it in since its not really a curse, even though it is.

If I READ foul language that is there because its part of the character, I am fine with it. I just dislike when people intentionally stick it it to try and prove they are not prudes or something.

So that is how I handle it at least.

[carld]

The characters in a story I'm working on right now swear somewhat. It's about at the level you'll get on a basic cable drama. No f-bombs, but a few d*mns and the occasional sh*t used in moments of fear or exasperation.

[Timoleon]

I'm not a big fan of gratuitous swearing in books. But for some reason I really like Richard K. Morgan's "Altered Carbon", which is filled with it. Go figure.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kcmay

Characters' swearing can be taken too far (Melusine by Sarah Monette), but I don't mind (and use) situation-appropriate swearing. If a f-ing character is in the f-ing habit of f-ing swearing every other f-ing word, maybe there's a way to f-ing get that across without f-ing bogging down the f-ing story with all those f-ing f-bombs.

I certainly know people who talk like that. I find it tedious personally - it shows that the speaker has an extremely restricted vocabulary.

As a side-note, I've always found the American use of this word "f-bomb" to refer to the word "fuck" very amusing. Is it supposed to be less "shocking"?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by mattlynn

I had an e-mail this morning from a reader who said he was a big fan of my books, which was nice of course. But he also pointed out that the characters in the Death Force series used the word ‘sodding’ all the time, and it got a bit repetitive.

He’s right, of course. They do, and it is.

There is a reason, however. They are soldiers. In real life it would be fu%£kig this and f!c£king that. And for some reason, I don’t think swearing works very well in books. I don’t have anything against it in real life, and it can work fine in films, but I print it somehow falls flat.

So I use sodding instead.

But maybe that doesn’t quite work either?

Any other writers have any thoughts?

Matt Lynn

Are your soldiers Brittish? If not, sodding wont work well. If they are American, then Fing this and Fing that is the way to do it. It will just read funny if they use sodding instead of the proper swears. But if they are British, another phrase that can work is bloody hell.

[crich70]

Larry Niven came up with his own 'swear' word in his Ringworld books. He had his characters say 'Tanj' which is short for "There Ain't No Justice." I don't know how successful such invented language is generally but I imagine he wasn't the first nor the last to do something of the sort.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Are your soldiers Brittish? If not, sodding wont work well. If they are American, then Fing this and Fing that is the way to do it. It will just read funny if they use sodding instead of the proper swears. But if they are British, another phrase that can work is bloody hell.

What about 'crickey'? I've heard of British characters using that one too.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by crich70

What about 'crickey'? I've heard of British characters using that one too.

Nobody would say that these days.

[Fbone]

There's too much cursing in this thread.

[xg4bx]

Originally Posted by crich70

Larry Niven came up with his own 'swear' word in his Ringworld books. He had his characters say 'Tanj' which is short for "There Ain't No Justice." I don't know how successful such invented language is generally but I imagine he wasn't the first nor the last to do something of the sort.

imo made up curses are a MUST for fantasy or science fiction. i highly doubt 500 years from now or in a fantasy kingdom, F- or S- would have much weight or meaning. the use of a god's name as a curse in fantasy or in the future something like a political traitor's name would be used (like Quisling is still sometimes used today).

i hope in 500 years though we'll have evolved past the concept of "naughty" words.

[xg4bx]

Originally Posted by mr ploppy

The best line in the TV version of Repo-Man was "Flip you, motherflipper, you flipping flip."

tv edits are the best. they're even better when they use a voiceover from somebody who sounds nothing like the actor. "forget you" is commonly used in american tv edits. or the famous line from die hard becomes "yippie kai ay mr. falcon" whenever die hard 2 is shown on tv.

studios have gotten smart and will actually film tv friendly edits but older movies are a laugh riot.

some movies require so many edits it becomes a matter of why even bother showing it i.e. gladiator, fight club, anything by kevin smith, etc.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by Fbone

There's too much cursing in this thread.

I won't argue the point either way though what one person sees as swearing another might think of as tame. I don't generally think it adds much to fiction myself. And if it is used a little can go a long way. I generally don't type the words either. I only did that one to ask if it were relevant to British fictional characters. Though now I think of it I think Steve the Crocodile Hunter used it often on TV. Hard to say what counts as swearing now days when so much is allowed to be said on TV.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by xg4bx

tv edits are the best. they're even better when they use a voiceover from somebody who sounds nothing like the actor. "forget you" is commonly used in american tv edits. or the famous line from die hard becomes "yippie kai ay mr. falcon" whenever die hard 2 is shown on tv.

studios have gotten smart and will actually film tv friendly edits but older movies are a laugh riot.

some movies require so many edits it becomes a matter of why even bother showing it i.e. gladiator, fight club, anything by kevin smith, etc.

And sometimes there are different cuts of a movie depending on where in the world it is being shown. What one country thinks is tame in terms of swearing and violence may be considered excessive in another.