WTF: the F-word, fudge, frick, flippin’ heck! This is just my opinion as an author and publisher. I am not advocating that you need to use profanities, but in some scripts, it sometimes sounds really silly if you don’t. An example would be a hard-hitting crime story would hardly use dialog like, “That dang, dog-gon, mother flipper, stole my car,” it is just not realistic, and as a reader, I would feel it rather patronizing. You could get around it by simply saying, Tony the mafia boss swore loudly. Better that than, gosh, goodness, jeez. Strong language is a matter of taste in my opinion.
In romantic settings, it is also problematic. The more passionate the scene, the more frenzied the activity, the more the dialogue lends itself to bad language. In the throes of passion, it would not carry the mood of a passionate sex scene with the dialogue “Come on big boy, let’s get jiggy,” though in a comedy it would make me smile. In a romantic setting, it would break me out of the story. And if I was reading a script that would be a mark against accepting the script.
Despite what I have said there really are no absolutes. You can write great romance without a single sware word, and we have published a fair number. It is your story you can use the language you feel comfortable with. These are just my thoughts.
I would love to hear your views, thoughts, and stories you might like to share, on the blog, Facebook or Twitter.
A Woman’s Secret by C.L. Koch is now available, along with the new book from, Gabriella Hewitt Out of the Shadows