Row80: Swearing over the goalposts...


I have gotten derailed and may have to move the goal posts.  Sick kid and hubby and cats and Christmas decorating and life have collaborated to derail my writing progress.    Somebody get me a violin.  I haven't made much progress in the past week. I'm sitting at 66,000 and my projected goal for the day is supposed to be 74,000.   I have some work cut out for me.  The past couple days I've sat down to write and it hasn't gone smoothly.  So, today and I know you aren't suppose to do this because it is a rough first draft after all, I went through the entire thing, organized and outlined what scenes I do have to figure out where I was, because it is a mystery after all and what did I do with the dang clues.  I think I have a handle on it now and am ready to proceed forward.    Yaahoo!

Also, I came to a decision about my main character.  She is a prosecuting attorney and since she can't swear in court, I decided she won't swear in the rest of the her life.   It was interesting because I had never really given it much thought before.  An attorney has to be articulate so it stands to reason, right.  They can't be telling the judge the ruling is f'ed up or the defense attorney, well I think that is bs.  Can you imagine? *facepalm*   I decided that in order for her to not to slip up in court, she just wouldn't use those words at all.  It seems to have rubbed off on the rest of the characters as well.  They find themselves catching it and changing a word midstream in order not to swear around her.

I noticed something interesting the other day.   You remember orange county choppers?  We hadn't watched it in a long time.  I just can't stand shows in which folks can't communicate without using the f word in every single sentence.   Hubby got me to watch the American Chopper Live Build off and I have to say I was really proud of Paul Tuttle Jr.   Through the whole show he took the high road and I don't think I heard one swear word come out of his mouth. He refused to say anything negative and I think he deserved to win. I think Senior thought so too and wanted him to win, which is why he came out with such a bizarre design.   Senior and potty mouthed Jessie James couldn't censor themselves for anything and it just goes to show, money doesn't buy you class.  Paul Tuttle Jr exhibited true class and when he started acting like an articulate adult, people started taking him more seriously.  

What do you think.  Is it more effective to have only the bad guys swear? 

That's my insight for the month.  Row80 ends in another week.  However my goal is to finish the first draft by the end of the month, so I have 16 days left.  Going to do my darnest to make it.  Wish me luck.

Check out how everyone else is doing here.

4 comments:

  1. I read something recently that said it does help to swear when you are angry. I guess it helps you feel calmer. I feel that people who swear, the every other word kind, don't have much in the way of vocabulary and that people should be able to express themselves without swearing. It is a sign of maturity and intellect. But I usually don't have a problem with it, if it is in the context of the moment (like in the King's Speech) or if it is realistic. (group of people or occupation that usually swear)
    Sister Karen

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  2. Profanity is like pepper- a little goes a long way, and you don't want to sprinkle it on every dish. :)

    As for lawyer-type characters, I find them amusing when they crack under pressure and swear and rant and rave. But maybe your lawyer is competent, in which case, she would project a facade of sanity. Does she swear in private? Maybe she has Tourette syndrome, and the only way she can manage is to let loose a string of expletives in a restroom stall during breaks. Add paranoia to the mix and you have a real crisis. :)

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  3. Sorry you're somewhat stalled. It's such a busy time of year, I'm not even bothering until the new year (see my check in post).

    It's interesting that you brought up the curse words because I have recently been working on stopping the cussing myself. Yes, I've been known to curse like a sailor. LOL That is also one of the things I'm conflicted about in the writing. Characters...to curse or not to curse. Luckily, my WIP is set in medieval times and since we don't really know for certain what kinds of curse words they used, it's better to just leave them out. There's nothing worse than a movie or book set in medieval times with the f bomb going off every minute. Very inauthentic.

    I'm also conflicted about the presence of sex in my writing. I would rather just leave it out, thank you! What do you think?

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  4. Wishing you luck! Sounds like you've made strides, even if word count has been slower to catch up. Can't get the words without the planning, so pat yourself on the back.

    It's such a rough time of year to settle down and write.

    Hope to see you in ROW80 Round 1 2012!

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