On swearing in YA

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It's funny that I'm posting about this, since it's one of the three things I said I'd never post about. BUT, I was curious to hear your opinions on this topic. I'm not trying to start an argument, just genuinely curious, so please don't bash me or anyone else who comments on this post. I know you are all awesome, so I'm sure I have nothing to worry about. :)

I'm not a big swearer. Never have been. So it comes as no surprise that I don't swear in my books. Yes, occasionally something happens to a character that the only logical word would be a cuss word, but I usually put "he cursed under his breath" or "she swore". Something along those lines. I told myself a long time ago, that my kids would be reading my books someday and I don't need them reading curse words that I've written. They'll hear enough swearing at school that I don't need to write it in my books as well. And I'm not going to say I'll never ever put a curse word in any of my books, since every book is different, but for now, the books I've written don't need them.

To be honest, I don't mind reading books with occasional swearing in them. It doesn't bother me. What DOES bother me is when an author puts swearing into his/her books just for shock factor. And if there is a lot of swearing on every page, I'll usually put the book down and not pick it up again. Yes, I'm probably missing out on some fantastic books, but a lot of swearing really pulls me out of the story. I'm not saying people who swear in their books are bad. I promise I like you all. PROMISE! :) I just prefer cleaner language. Probably because I write lighter stories and prefer reading lighter ones as well. ;)

So, how much swearing is too much? Do you use curse words in your books? Does it bother you when you read a bunch of swear words in YA? And I still promise I won't hate you if you swear! :)

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Published on April 23, 2012 11:20
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