Lois Winston, author of the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries is guest author today. Her latest book in the series is A Sew Deadly Cruise. But, today, she’s going to talk about language.
Thank you, Lois.
*****
An Expletive by Any Other Name is a Euphemism
When I was seven years old, we moved to a new apartment. The building, which housed two apartments downstairs and two upstairs, was owned by the family who lived above us. They had two sons, both slightly older than me.
On the first day, I was outside in the small front yard with the younger son. His mother opened the window and shouted down to him. I don’t remember what she wanted him to do, but he objected – strenuously. What followed was several minutes of back and forth shouting filled with words I had never heard.
Later, when I went inside, I asked my mother what those words meant. She refused to tell me, only saying they were “dirty” and I’d better not use them if I knew what was good for me. How was I to know there were “dirty” words I wasn’t supposed to use? I’d never heard them before and had no idea what they meant.
Over the course of the next four years I heard those words on a daily basis. The walls were thin, and the people upstairs always seemed to be shouting at the top of their lungs.
As I grew older, I eventually learned the definition of those words. I also learned that they’re not necessarily considered “dirty” in certain contexts or in some cultures. I’ve even been known to use one or two of them when warranted. I’ve always believed that a word is just a word. It’s how it’s used that matters.
There are some people who believe using four-letter words represents lazy writing, that there is always a better alternative. I disagree. Although I don’t believe in using words just for the sake of shock value, I do believe that when writing dialogue, it’s important to stay true to the character and the scene. After all, a Mafia hitman isn’t going to say “Gosh darn it” or “Golly gee whiz.” He’s going to drop a four-letter word or two on occasion.
Using the occasional expletive never bothered my readers when I was writing romantic suspense, but when I made the switch to writing my Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries, I began to receive some blowback from a handful of readers. Although I consider my books humorous amateur sleuth mysteries, my publisher marketed them as cozies, and I quickly discovered that some cozy readers get really upset over even the mildest of expletives. It was quite a shock, given that my editor hadn’t objected to the use of certain words in my books, and during the editing process, no one of the publishing house had ever requested I switch from expletives to euphemisms.
Not wanting to lose readers, over time I’ve stopped defending my use of the words and bowed to the pressure of a vocal minority. It’s more important to me to get my books into the hands of as many readers as possible and have them like what they’ve read. So as the series has progressed, I’ve switched to euphemisms. Now that I have the rights back to my earlier books, I’ve gone back and done some revising, removing the more objectionable words. I learned a long time ago that it’s best to choose your battles, and this ia one battle I’ve decided is no longer worth fighting.
How do you feel about colorful language in books? Do you blush or become upset when you read any of the seven words George Carlin listed in his infamous routine, or do four-letter words in fiction not bother you?
A Sew Deadly Cruise
An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery, Book 9
Life is looking up for magazine crafts editor Anastasia Pollack. Newly engaged, she and photojournalist fiance Zack Barnes are on a winter cruise with her family, compliments of a Christmas gift from her half-brother-in-law. Son Alex’s girlfriend and her father have also joined them. Shortly after boarding the ship, Anastasia is approached by a man with an unusual interest in her engagement ring. When she tells Zack of her encounter, he suspects the man might be a jewel thief scouting for his next mark. But before Anastasia can point the man out to Zack, the would-be thief approaches him, revealing his true motivation. Long-buried secrets now threaten the well-being of everyone Anastasia holds dear. And that’s before the first dead body turns up.
Craft projects included.
Buy Links
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3fwHR7X
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/a-sew-deadly-cruise
Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-sew-deadly-cruise-lois-winston/1137427499?ean=2940162697930
Apple iBooks: https://books.apple.com/us/book/a-sew-deadly-cruise/id1526052822
Bio: USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is a former literary agent and an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source materials for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry.
Website: www.loiswinston.com
Newsletter sign-up: https://app.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/z1z1u5
Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog: www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/anasleuth
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Anasleuth
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/722763.Lois_Winston
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lois-winston
Thanks for having me on your blog today, Lesa!
There are only two words I consider inappropriate and make me cringe. One is rarely used by female writers. And one is so disrespectful to a certain race of people. I'll say no more. But, most profanity doesn't bother me. I use more profanity in one of my series than the other. I've never had a reader complain. Good question, though.
You're lucky you've never had a reader complain, Kathleen. I've had readers tell me they'll never buy another one of my books. And some have left scathing 1-star reviews over what I've always considered rather mild curse words. But I've I learned a long time ago that as a writer, I'm never going to please everyone. I've removed most of the more objectionable words but not those I consider mild.
You're welcome, Lois. Thank you!
When dialogue is replaced by silence and a fulminating look. It only works so many times.
Good post.
LOL! Good one, Shelley! Thanks for stopping by!
Great post, Lois. I agree with you on everything. I was kind of surprised to discover that a few cozy readers object to even mild curse words, and so I now leave them out. (At least I make an effort to do so. )
The problem seems to be (said she, simplifying it in a dubious nutshell) that some readers don't recognise it's the character who is swearing, as opposed to the author. Of course people in books swear. Just as there are people in books who express racist, sexist, homophobic etc etc sentiments.
Sigh.
I totally agree with you, Susan, just as I've heard of actors being attacked for the role they played rather than for the person they really are.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting, Marilyn and Susan! And yes, there seem to be some readers who can't separate the characters from the authors. It's often difficult to write realistic characters if we can't write them as they truly are, warts and all. Rarely does a bad guy speak as though he's in church or Sunday school! And teenagers often use language we'd prefer they didn't.
As you say, you want to sell as many books as possible to readers who will be satisfied with the product. Selling expletives to cozy readers is like selling ice to Inuits – no way to make a living.
A good conversation to have. When I began writing fiction back in 2000 I understood that many readers of cozy mysteries, especially those who bought books in Christian bookstores, would not tolerate about 99% of "swear words." I didn't like them much either, though, here and there, one or two have popped up in my writing. However, I did invent a word for my main male character, a retired police officer. The word? "Blast." No one has objected. I slide over swearing, if not overdone, in most books I read, but quit reading one which relied strongly on the "f" word. (And, as has been said, many swears are demeaning to women. Phooey on those! )
True, Jeremy, but I never considered my books to be cozies, and neither did my publisher, even though they decided to market them as cozies. I believe that's where the problem arose. Cozy readers have certain expectations, and my traditionally published mysteries challenged those expectations. That's why I've removed most of the words that readers complained about once I had the rights back to the books. Still, there are readers out there who even object to the use of "damn" and "hell."
Radine, your comment reminds me of the Battlestar Gallactica series remake. They replaced the F-word with "frack." There was quite a bit of "fracking" in that series, and it had nothing to do with mining gas! But to me, I don't understand how substituting a word to replace an objectionable word is any different from the objectionable word if it's used the same way and means the same thing. Everyone who watched that show knew the word was being used to get around the censors. The show just made up a new F-word, but apparently that was OK.
I've had some readers take issue with my characters swearing in my traditional mysteries, and this, like for you, took me a bit by surprise. There's only one book where I use the F word (again, in dialogue, when the guy's life is falling apart). Usually it's damn or hell or "holy crap."
One way I discovered to get around this is to have a character in the book who doesn't like cussing. That explains the no cussing to those who wonder why a cop is saying "What the devil?" instead of something stronger. He doesn't want to offend his lady friend.
And I figure the readers who don't like cussing will relate to that character.
In my cozy series, the main character says "Crapola!" 😀
Cassandra, I've heard some people even object to "crapola" or "crap". The truth is, we're never going to please everyone, and there are some people who take great pleasure in complaining, no matter what we write or don't write. Sometimes you just can't win.