Is It Okay To Swear? How To Handle Vulgarity

Swear words have been around for decades. Centuries. Whichever one is longer. Take your pick.

In the past, cultured society didn't swear. That was something left for less desirable company. Even to the 1900s, publishers still deleted any swear words from manuscripts. At any rate, it happened during Ernest Hemingway's time.

But times are changing. Swear words are being allowed to stay in books. People everywhere are swearing. 

Does this mean it's okay to write swears? 

I do not swear. I do not like swearing. If you do, I'll respect that. But I understand that culture is changing and swearing can add a sense of realism. Not all characters can be perfect. So what to do? 

Things To Remember

1. Swearing is louder on page than out loud. 

Nowadays, it's rare to go somewhere without someone muttering some sort of profanity. If you're against swearing, it eventually becomes second nature to tune out these naughty words. 

But when it comes to books, it's not that easy to ignore it. Especially for someone who has read many books and have mastered the art of skim reading.

When I'm reading articles, skim reading, my eyes make a beeline for the words that stand out. These can be anywhere between keywords to words I don't know the meaning of to swear words. 

Profanity stands out. It's right there on the page. While people may not mind so much in conversation, publishers have been deleting swear words from manuscripts for years. It's an anomaly. And it's becoming increasingly popular. 

Think to yourself, do you want to be known to use swear words?

2. People may pick up the language.

Using swear words without something or someone being there to say hey, that's wrong, is basically encouraging readers to swear. Let's look at a few scenarios.

    A) Person reads book. Unconsciously picks up language.

    B) Person reads book. Thinks swearing is cool.

    C) Person reads book. Uses word without knowing what it means.

    D) Person reads book. [Insert your own version here]

Scenario A happens becomes of overexposure and most of the time, a weak foundation against swearing. If the person was a kid or teen and they're chill with swearing, it's up to them. But if they're told not to by a parent, it becomes a problem.

Scenario B is much more common. Unchecked swearing can make a character seem cool or tough. Personally, I don't think so. Elegance bloggers have recommended to not swear at all to make yourself seem refined. To swear or not to swear...it's all up to you. 

Scenario C is classic case. I once thought procrastinating meant thinking. Embarrassing stories have come out from that. But imagine if I thought a swear word meant something else and used it? Forget embarrassing. 

Consider where you stand with swearing. Do you think it's okay? If so, go ahead. Add all the swear words you want. If you don't agree, make sure there's a swear checker. Be like Captain America.

3. Swearing may turn people off.

People strongly against swearing may not tolerate it. At all. The smallest, mildest swear words are enough to set turn them off. 

There's a lot of reasons why someone might not like cussing, including because of someone's religious belief. You have to respect their values. If you include swearing in your book, you risk turning a good chunk of your audience away. 

It's important to check whether swearing is vital to the story. If it's not, deleting it can keep more of your audience. But you might not mind whether these people keep reading your novel or not. 

Source: Tenor

Tips For Handling Swears

1. Respect your target audience.

Who's reading your book? This is an question you should be asking no matter whether it's about swearing or not. When you're writing a book, who you're writing to is important.

These are the general age guidelines to follow. If you're writing for babies, toddlers or young children, leave out the naughty words completely. MG fiction can get away with mild words. YA less mild words. Adult fiction can get away with pretty much anything. 

Respect your TA. But also remember to respect your conscience. 

2. Don't use cheap replacements.

You may be thinking that you want to add a swear word but instead of leaving it there, you can replace them by using these signs: !@#$%^&*() 

Unless you're writing a comic, it's best to avoid this. It's bad typography, you know?

You may want to avoid strong swear words but feel okay with mild ones. By all means, use the mild ones if you want, but don't sacrifice character for this. I'll explain further in the third tip. 

It's better to use "she swore" or "he swore" as a replacement. It doesn't actually have contain swear words which is cool, but you still have to consider that people don't need to what the swear word is. They'll fill in the blanks themselves. 

Another way is to make up a swear word. Brandon Sanderson does this really well. If you need an example, go check out his books. 

3. Be true to your character.

Different people will have different opinions on swearing. This will be the same to the characters in your book. 

A higher classed, religious, innocent and/or highly moral person will probably use light swear words or not at all. A lower classed, unreligious, vulgar and/or lowly moral person will probably use heavier swear words.

With the latter case, don't use an uncharacteristic milder curse. As much as you may think heavy swearing is wrong, it's going to cheapen your story. Instead, use the "s/he swore" or something similar. It'll give the same impression without actually swearing. 

4. Use swear words sparingly.

Swearing can be used to emphasise what the character is feeling. In some cases, swearing can even be understandable, if not agreeable. 

I'm going to use an analogy for this. Let's say you own a shop. You have 100 bottles of lemonade and 1 bottle of water. Which one is going to be more expensive? If you said the bottle of water, congratulations. You're right. 

The more you have of something, the less worth it has. In the same way, the more swear words there are, the less impact it has. 

Say someone just betrayed your main character. If your MC is someone who swears at stubbed toes, the emotional impact isn't as much as if the MC is someone who doesn't swear. This leads me to my next point. 

5. Use swear words specifically.

The whole impact story can be used to emotionally manipulate readers. Having a character who doesn't usually swear, swear at a specific part of the story can indicate the strong emotions and cue the heartbroken readers. 

Source: Tenor

A made up swear word may become a good joke among general readers and fans. Novelty, hey? 

6. Don't use it at all.

If swearing isn't necessary, don't use it all. 

That's it.

I really don't think I can explain this further.

~ 

That wraps up three points to consider when you're deciding whether or not you want to include swear words and six tips on handling using them. As an author, your words impact people so you have to be aware of what message you're spreading about swearing. 

You also have to consider your TA and the essence of your character. Don't use cheap replacements. If you use swear words at all, use them sparingly and specifically. Or don't use it at all. Your choice.

In case you're wondering, I won't be using swear words in my stories. :)

Related: 

Writing Is A Real Job! An Author's Purpose
Do Books Really Need A Moral?
7 Typography Sins

What's your take on swearing? Do you use any of these tips? Do you use any other tips? Leave a comment below. If you liked this post, be sure to share, follow and eat chocolate for more content! (Eat chocolate anyway.)