F$%k Yes!

Several years ago, after a lively discussion at GCLS about the use of profanity, I wrote a blog arguing that I vehemently disagreed with the perspective, insisting that the use of profanity in sapphic fiction, specifically the F-bomb, was not lazy or intelligent writing. Obviously, there are circumstances where it does not fit. I don’t believe that women in the 1800s were big fans of profanity. However, some characters, especially modern-day women, let the F-bomb fly freely and often. Personally, I find it very freeing at times to let that F-bomb out to play. No other word will fit. Now, there is scientific evidence of how the use of profanity is actually healthy. No shit….Research suggests that the occasional use of the F-bomb can have a beneficial effect on our stress, anxiety, and depression. Here’s what I found after reading an article on this:

In 2009, researchers found that subjects had a higher tolerance for pain when uttering a curse word versus a neutral word, specifically, the ability to keep their hand in ice water for longer periods.Individuals who rarely swear get more benefits from the use of profanity than those that let the F-bomb fly more freely and often. Well, damn…guess I need to be more judicious with my use of profanity. Apparently, the more a person swears, the greater the loss of potency for the effect it provides.For those who are obsessed with working out…guilty…a study conducted in 2022 in the Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology discovered that when people repeated a swear word while doing chair push-ups, they reported feeling more self-confidence. Researchers also found that swearing aloud was associated with improvements in exercise performance, such as cycling power and hand-grip strength.In the European Journal of Social Psychology, they discovered that when people wrote about a time they felt socially excluded and then repeated a swear word for two minutes, their hurt feelings and social distress were significantly less than for people who used a neutral word. Another study about impolite drivers (refusing to give the right of way) and traffic jams found that cursing helped people tamp down their anger and return to a more balanced state. I know I fel better after I flip the bird to some asshole driver. Apparently, cursing is a perfectly acceptable way to express frustration.Swearing can make people feel closer. It’s one tool in the toolbox in social situations. For example, it can turn an awkward social situation into something less formal by using profanity to break social taboos in a non-harmful way. It also can suggest that the person is honest by saying what they really believe. A bunch of studies in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science found a positive relationship between the use of profanity and honesty, depending on how and when people swore in their everyday lives. In those studies, the researchers found that “profanity was associated with less lying and deception” as well as a greater sense of integrity. Other studies in the journal Psychology, Crime & Law, found that the use of swear words in (fictitious) legal testimony made the testimony seem more credible than when the same testimony was free of profanity. Well, damn, this is how the orange turd gets people to believe he is honest, but I would argue that his rhetoric is far from non-harmful.A study in New Zealand found that workers in a soap factory had a more communal atmosphere as a result of the generous use of the F-bomb when expressing complaints or objections.One caution that I really should pay attention to is that overuse of profanity can lead to perceptions of the person being angry, hostile, or aggressive. Not a good thing! Also, a person needs to read the situation or audience and pay attention to power dynamics. For example, just because your boss swears does not mean it’s okay for you to follow suit in the workplace. Plus, some workplaces are more appropriate than others. Read the room!

Obviously, I have books with characters that swear a lot, and other times, I make a point of writing characters that frown at the use or overuse of profanity. My debut novel had two such characters, and it was a thing that one often chastised the other for their frequent use of profanity. I don’t have a problem including both types of characters, and the amount of profanity in my books will depend on the setting and characters. If you want to check out my books, you know the drill…just click the covers or links below! I’d especially love you to check out my two most recent contemporary romances, The Love Demand and The Kitten Trap. Both were fun to write.

The Kitten Trap The Love DemandClick on Covers for purchase links and description