: Re: Expressing shock a character feels - is the F word appropriate? I have a character who has been under stress, both at home and at work. His business is struggling and he was negotiating a

@Kevin153

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There are at least two angles to this that I would consider important:

On the one hand you have a pure character argument, i.e. is he a character who would use said language in an internal dialogue or aloud?

On the other hand there are publishing considerations, depending on the intended audience etc... crass language may limit your options going forward. This can take two forms, you may not be taken seriously because you use such language and publishers may feel your work is inappropriate for their target audience.

I've had the privilege of getting writing advice directly from several of my favourite authors, all of them gave the same basic advice:

"Write what you want to write, how you want to write it, or don't bother; argue with your editor when you get that far."

While you are drafting work it is more important for you as the author to understand what's going on than to worry about how it comes across to your potential audience. Once you are satisfied with your work pay careful attention to the feedback of your beta-reader(s), especially any around points of particular concern.

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