One of the most controversial books of it’s time, is J D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. The book was banned for it’s use of “vulgar language, sexual scenes and immorality”. In order to understand this, you need to consider the time in which it was published: 1951. Think about the condition of America during the 1950’s. If you’re very young, you’re probably not aware of the difference between American culture then, versus American culture now. A perfect example is television. Shows like “The Lone Ranger” and “I Love Lucy” were on the air. Children actually dressed up to go to school, and people dressed up to go to the movies. People were concerned with decency. So, a book in which a sixteen-year-old swears and talks about sex, would be a bit disturbing by those old standards.

Fast forward to now, and things are completely different. What was indecent then, is really quite common now. I recently read The Catcher in the Rye, because it was never assigned to me in school. I remember thinking, “What’s the big deal? So Holden swears a little. So what?” Then I had to remind myself of what I mentioned in the paragraphs above: it was a different time. By today’s standards, The Catcher in the Rye is pretty tame.

Here’s the question: should you swear in your writing? The answer may not be as simple as you may think. There are a few things to consider:

1. Who is your audience? In other words, who do you believe will read your book?
2. Are you personally comfortable with swearing?
3. Does swearing fit the story you are writing?

Who is your audience? Are you writing a story for a younger generation, or an older one? Or, is it a mixed audience? Younger readers–let’s say the seventeen to twenty-five year old crowd–probably won’t have a problem with a few swear words here and there. Older readers may be put off by vulgar language.

Are you personally comfortable with swearing? If you’re not the sort of person who swears, and you try to incorporate it into your writing, you may end up making yourself feel uncomfortable. Plus, you may come across as an amateur trying to use language you’re not comfortable with or even familiar with in your writing.

Does swearing fit the story you are writing? Is it really necessary? If you’re writing a story that takes place in the 1800’s, probably not. It depends on the story. What’s the story about? How old are your characters? Teens or young adults might swear; I doubt small children will. Also consider the setting of your story. Does it have an urban setting, or does it take place in a rural area?

When I started writing and publishing, I didn’t use any swear words in my writing. I published Our Lady of Righteous Rage in February of 2015. After I published it, I felt as though it was lacking something. The story concerns New York youths starting a punk rock band, and it takes place during the late 1990’s/early 2000’s. The characters are  anthropomorphized cats, but I imaged, being teenagers, they would swear. So, I republished the book in September of the same year, and added swearing to my dialogue. The swearing isn’t excessive, but I believe I added just the right amount to keep the story flowing.

Am I against using swearing in writing? No, I’m not. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. It depends on the writer, and the story.