Shock Value

It doesn’t take long upon visiting this blog to see that I swear. Not too many deacons, I suspect, put “Shit” right up on top a blog. If I found out I was the only one, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised (though I’ve known some deacons and preachers who swear with some regularity outside the printed/written word).

I kind of addressed this in a very recent post title “Light Weight” with the underlying question in it being: Is is time to change the way I communicate through this blog?

I suspect it is, but I also wonder if it will really be that big of a change in terms of how I come across. Perhaps not, and perhaps it’s really more of a step on a path than a major change.

For one thing, it’s not like I’m going to change the title of my blog. I like the title of my blog and it sums things up nicely, and I feel like I have some brand-name investment in it, if you will. If someone gets turned off by the title so much that they turn around and leave, I probably didn’t want them here to begin with or probably wouldn’t have had any hope of reaching them in any meaningful way, so it probably serves a role in that respect. Nor will the installments of my novel suddenly cease to have the occasional (and sometimes frequent) bit of swearing; I’m trying to present realistic, believable characters and, well, most people swear at some point.

I even think it’s reasonable to expect that I will still, in my other posts, bust out with some swearing from time to time when something really has my blood boiling.

But overall, I’m going to try to clean up my language. The reason, though, that I don’t think this will necessarily change the overall tenor of my blog is because I will still be talking about thorny and sometimes racy (read: sex oriented) topics, and I’m not that shy about talking about them. So, things are still going to be a bit risque and steamy around here at times.

Also, just because I won’t be using cuss words as often doesn’t mean that I won’t bust out with some metaphors and comparisons that will at time use blush- or cringe-inducing imagery. I’m just going to try to cut down on the “sailor talk” a bit, which is easy and lazy. I still intend to make my feelings and points as crytal clear (and perhaps sometimes painful) as I need to.

I’m just going to put those writer’s skills to work a bit more and stop taking relying so much on words that are inherently crude most of the time.

4 thoughts on “Shock Value

  1. Deacon Blue

    Just a nagging suspicion that I could do better. I mean, I’m a writer. Short of literally losing my temper (as you saw me doing at Deus Ex Malcontent today) in a personal interaction or on a quick comment at a blog, I can’t really see too many times or reasons why I need to resort to cussing when I can probably do a better job of expressing myself through “normal” words and still, if needed, get a pointed or intense effect.

    Or maybe it’s just having the little girl around, and saying potty and poop all the time now instead of piss or shit.
    😉

    Reply
  2. BlackWomenBlowTheTrumpet

    Hey there!

    I don’t use profanity at my blog and it doesn’t have anything to do with wanting to portray a certain image of a minister online because I am confrontational and abrasive at my forum fo’ so’!! *LOL*

    I just believe that those who are gifted writers really don’t need to rely on crude or vulgar language in order to pack a “punch” in their writing style.

    Peace, blessings and DUNAMIS!
    Lisa

    Reply
  3. Deacon Blue

    Well, even good writers can find appropriate use of profanity. Like any other words, cuss words do hold value and meaning. Just a matter of making sure I use them right as I use a powerful spice: sparingly and only in the appropriate dishes.

    And there I go, a writer mixing metaphors on top of everything else. Shame on me! 😛

    Reply

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