When to add "Strong Language" warning.

[CadmarLegend]

Please tell me, so that I can label things better. One of tye things I'm working on has "shit, fuck, and a few other words like that placed here and there. When should I add the strong language warning?

 

[Ai-chan]

When should you add? When your dialogue is at the level of, "I'm gonna fuck you like a bitch, then stuff your dick in your mouth, then I'm gonna run you over with a garbage truck, before I chop you into pieces and throw you into a pig pen, you worthless fucking piece of shit whore!"

Unless your story has that kind of traumatic sentences or scenes, Ai-chan doesn't think you need to bother. People who are offended by lone wordings of shit and fuck will find it hard to live anywhere. People curse, people get angry, and when they're angry, expletives come out. If you ban a word, people will find another word to be turned into expletives. One day we'll have to invent words just to create expletives.

So in Ai-chan's opinion, if the expletive is just an expletive such as, "Fuck, I can't do this shit!" then no need to label it. But if there is malice in the wording such as, "I'm gonna fuck you up you little bitch and make you a new hole when I'm done." then that's when you should add the warning.

 

[CadmarLegend]

When should you add? When your dialogue is at the level of, "I'm gonna fuck you like a bitch, then stuff your dick in your mouth, then I'm gonna run you over with a garbage truck, before I chop you into pieces and throw you into a pig pen, you worthless fucking piece of shit whore!"

Unless your story has that kind of traumatic sentences or scenes, Ai-chan doesn't think you need to bother. People who are offended by lone wordings of shit and fuck will find it hard to live anywhere. People curse, people get angry, and when they're angry, expletives come out. If you ban a word, people will find another word to be turned into expletives. One day we'll have to invent words just to create expletives.

So in Ai-chan's opinion, if the expletive is just an expletive such as, "Fuck, I can't do this shit!" then no need to label it. But if there is malice in the wording such as, "I'm gonna fuck you up you little bitch and make you a new hole when I'm done." then that's when you should add the warning.

Wow....

 

[Help]

You don't even need to use curses like shit or fuck to add that tag, I think, so long as you describe something that can be traumatic to a lot of people, such as describing something gory and disgusting in such a way that the reader will vividly imagine it in their head; hence, you've used Strong Language.

Please correct me if I am wrong, experienced writers.

 

[Jemini]

You don't even need to use curses like shit or fuck to add that tag, I think, so long as you describe something that can be traumatic to a lot of people, such as describing something gory and disgusting in such a way that the reader will vividly imagine it in their head; hence, you've used Strong Language.

Please correct me if I am wrong, experienced writers.

I think what you are talking about would be more along the lines of the "gore" tag. However, I certainly am very aware it's possible to have a string of pure dialogue from a character that does not use a single one of the "words you can't say on TV," but is still extremely trauma inducing in terms of how brutal of a tear-down it is. Actually, I kinda have a sort of respect for authors capable of having someone tear another character down so badly that it requires a "strong language" label despite the absence of any one of the often censored 4 letter words.

 

[Muddy]

The content guidelines only mention "if the intended audience is 17 and up". This is really vague and offers us very little to go on. So basically all I can do is speculate. As I am new to this site, the prudent thing to do would be to ignore my word entirely and wait for someone more knowledgeable to chip in.

That said, let's speculate. ScribbleHub is hosted in the US, and an unofficial demographics poll places nearly half of the audience in the US as well, so a bias towards the US definition of things is probably prudent. To make it easier to think about, "audience 17 and up" is equivalent to an R rating. The most well-known definition of an R rating is the one from the MPAA. It roughly defines strong language as:

• multiple instances of sexual expletives in situations that do not absolutely require said words;
• a single instance of a sexual expletive in a sexual context;
• every handful of less severe expletives generally counts as one instance of the big no-no words.

That might sound absurdly strict, especially if you come from a non-US-centric culture where expletives aren't as harshly frowned upon. Personally, as one of those non-US-centric people, I've learned to keep my mouth shut and rate as an American. I'm simply way too much of a chickenshit to risk getting flamed solely because I disagree with the US definition of an R rating.

On the other hand, Scribblehub is a small site, and the definition in the content guidelines is vague, maybe purposefully so. This might grant you significantly more leeway than what I outlined. I'm not the mods, so don't take my word on that.

For completeness sake, here are similar definitions of what constitutes gore and sex:

• either lots of "fake gore" (think really bloody action movie) or a small amount of highly realistic gore (think horror movie) grants an R rating.
• Sexually-themed nudity (without sex), or actual sex also earns you an R.

Finally, a little tongue-in-cheek, how do you avoid content warnings:

• Fake swears aren't swearing. Your characters can talk about fraggin' shizz all day long and no one will care;
• blood is only gory if it's red;
• getting really, really, really, really cuddly while still mostly dressed isn't sex

 

[K5Rakitan]

I grew up in a family where we didn't say "fuck" or "shit" at all, so I stay on the safe side by adding that tag.

 

[Deleted member 45782]

Please tell me, so that I can label things better. One of tye things I'm working on has "shit, fuck, and a few other words like that placed here and there. When should I add the strong language warning?

Same. My stories probably maybe have some cuss words throw in. But its a sprinkle its not gonna be like every three sentences. So...wondering that too.

You don't even need to use curses like shit or fuck to add that tag, I think, so long as you describe something that can be traumatic to a lot of people, such as describing something gory and disgusting in such a way that the reader will vividly imagine it in their head; hence, you've used Strong Language.

Please correct me if I am wrong, experienced writers.

That would be gore and there's an area to mark it down for that. Strong language is meaning swearing words, not gore.
That is why there is an area to mark down if it has gore and there's an area to mark down if the story has strong language.
Those two are different and separate @Help.

 

[WasatchWind]

Please tell me, so that I can label things better. One of tye things I'm working on has "shit, fuck, and a few other words like that placed here and there. When should I add the strong language warning?

I identify strong language as anything beyond the F word, or copious use of less extreme swearing. OMG, da**, sh** and such I consider more minor. B*** is a stronger one, but if you only have a few I would not consider it strong langue. C*** I would immediately consider strong language if you even just drop one.

These of course are my personal standards, so take them with a pillar of salt.

 

[PhillisCreziles]

For me, I only add the Strong Language warning the moment characters have thoughts or dialogue that have vulgar words in them.

 

[bananapink]

having derogatory/curse words aimed to hurt or cause emotional/mental imbalance to a character... or it could be something outrageously lewd (>///<)

 

[Reisinling]

I grew up in a family where we didn't say "fuck" or "shit" at all, so I stay on the safe side by adding that tag.

Saame! I started swearing as an adult, because of videogames! And taxes. And responsibilities.

Duck real life maaan! Duck it!

 

[BenJepheneT]

Unless that sentence is gonna reach out form the screen and Rob me blind of my money, I don't think shit like that requires a tag.

 

[CadmarLegend]

Unless that sentence is gonna reach out form the screen and Rob me blind of my money, I don't think shit like that requires a tag.

How would it rob you?

 

[BenJepheneT]

How would it rob you?

I don't know, but if it finds a way, you can consider that some strong ass language

 

[CadmarLegend]

I don't know, but if it finds a way, you can consider that some strong ass language

If it finds a way, then I won't consider it "strong language", but "supernatural language" and sell the information to scientists to make a few million buckaroos....

 

[Yairy]

When should you add? When your dialogue is at the level of, "I'm gonna fuck you like a bitch, then stuff your dick in your mouth, then I'm gonna run you over with a garbage truck, before I chop you into pieces and throw you into a pig pen, you worthless fucking piece of shit whore!"

Unless your story has that kind of traumatic sentences or scenes, Ai-chan doesn't think you need to bother. People who are offended by lone wordings of shit and fuck will find it hard to live anywhere. People curse, people get angry, and when they're angry, expletives come out. If you ban a word, people will find another word to be turned into expletives. One day we'll have to invent words just to create expletives.

So in Ai-chan's opinion, if the expletive is just an expletive such as, "Fuck, I can't do this shit!" then no need to label it. But if there is malice in the wording such as, "I'm gonna fuck you up you little bitch and make you a new hole when I'm done." then that's when you should add the warning.

I can't get past Ai-chan's adorable post with casual expletives in it. Reading this with that imaginative loli's voice is pure bliss. I love it!

Onto the subject at hand, I don't even bother with it in most cases. I just add a "strong language" tag if most of the cursing is geared towards individuals. But if I have a character who casually uses "shit" or "fuck" or "what the hell?" then it's whatever. I honestly wouldn't think too deep into it. As others suggested, I doubt there's many who would put in the comments and say, "I was offended by x y z language and will officially drop your story!" And if there is...roll on, roller!

 

[TunTun]

Saame! I started swearing as an adult, because of videogames! And taxes. And responsibilities.

Duck real life maaan! Duck it!

but specially Taxes

 

[xluferx]

Swear words aren't the issue since EVERYONE speaks them but you can easily offend and insult people without those words, for that case o do think the warning is necessary, elaborate sentences meant to hurt others

 

[CadmarLegend]

Swear words aren't the issue since EVERYONE speaks them but you can easily offend and insult people without those words, for that case o do think the warning is necessary, elaborate sentences meant to hurt others

So if it was mild cussing, written to just add expression and not exactly to hate on another character, I don't need to add in the warning? Like, "Ah, that shitty brother of mine. He's terrible for giving me this workload."