Hooray! I finally published Heller's Revenge at Smashwords and kept to my end of September deadline as well (just).
Now, onto Blood Sport!
Friday, September 30, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
Sneak preview of Heller's Revenge - chapter one!
I've just uploaded the first chapter of Heller's Revenge in PDF format on my website.
You can also find the first chapters of Heller and Blood Ties on my website, also in PDF.
You can also find the first chapters of Heller and Blood Ties on my website, also in PDF.
Friday, September 2, 2011
To swear or not to swear?
Should characters swear in novels? Normally, I would say f@#* yeah! I have no problem with swearing and am not offended by it. Contemporary books should reflect contemporary times and I swear, my partner swears, my friends swear, my workmates swear, my family swears, and it's hard to miss people swearing on TV, on the radio, in movies, in the street, on the internet and in the books I read.
But I guess it also depends on the character and the context. I have what some may consider to be a lot of swearing in both my novels. But I also have a main character (Heller) who never swears and another character (Fiona in Blood Ties) who swears constantly and creatively (and who is perversely one of my favourite characters to write dialogue for!).
I'm grappling with a dilemma in editing Heller's Revenge though. Should I drop the c-bomb or not?
It's not a word I personally use or like to hear being used. It's not being used gratuitously in the story, but is expressing the deep sense of betrayal, hurt and anger felt by a minor character. I believe that it's very plausible that a person such as this character might use the word in such a situation, but it does seem to remain the last frontier in today's culture.
I'm 95% sure that I'm going to leave it out, even though it's a pointed piece of dialogue that communicates his feelings clearly and succinctly. I guess I just need to be clear in my own mind why I'm taking it out of the draft before I make a final decision.
But I guess it also depends on the character and the context. I have what some may consider to be a lot of swearing in both my novels. But I also have a main character (Heller) who never swears and another character (Fiona in Blood Ties) who swears constantly and creatively (and who is perversely one of my favourite characters to write dialogue for!).
I'm grappling with a dilemma in editing Heller's Revenge though. Should I drop the c-bomb or not?
It's not a word I personally use or like to hear being used. It's not being used gratuitously in the story, but is expressing the deep sense of betrayal, hurt and anger felt by a minor character. I believe that it's very plausible that a person such as this character might use the word in such a situation, but it does seem to remain the last frontier in today's culture.
I'm 95% sure that I'm going to leave it out, even though it's a pointed piece of dialogue that communicates his feelings clearly and succinctly. I guess I just need to be clear in my own mind why I'm taking it out of the draft before I make a final decision.
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