There are a few words, when used in a story that bother me.

[THBGato]

People differ, I suppose. I haven't heard someone use 'ass' i.e. donkey as an insult in a very long time. I would just call them a donkey...

Seems like only yesterday my man Willy Shakes was dropping these slick puns:

"Oh Bottom, thou art translated!"

"I see their knavery, this is to make an ass of me!"

 

[AG31]

I wish all responders here had told us where they're from. "Cunt," for instance, as I understand it, has a different resonance in different parts of the English speaking world.

 

[AG31]

Pussy and panties. Any time, any where. Context is irrelevant. I don't even like typing them here.

 

[LordMorningwood]

I wish all responders here had told us where they're from. "Cunt," for instance, as I understand it, has a different resonance in different parts of the English speaking world.

Very common in Scotland, even used as a mocking endearment amongst friends: “Ye daft cunt” etc. (See Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting, and other books.)

 

[intim8]

There's not too many words that in and of themselves turn me off, but some words should be used in small doses and in the right context, or they will turn me off.

I like to use increasing specificity and/or crassness of terms to signal an escalation of a situation. Like in inner monologue, a character might be thinking the girl has beautiful breasts, but as things get further along, he wants to squeeze her tits. He wants to be with her, then he wants to fuck her, then he wants to pound her. He moves his fingers in her cleft, then licks her pussy, then fucks her cunt.

My First Time story, "Last Summer" is about two friends that grow up together and decide to have sex before going off to college. All the awkwardness of two people who supposedly never thought of each other that way ensues. When she takes her top off, he says that her breasts are beautiful. She tells him that today, they are tits. It's the turning point for both of them from innocent kids exploring to two young adults having sex.

 

[KinderRiegel]

It heavily depends on your personal preference. How were you raised? Does your social circle use "strong" words in everyday language?

As a native German speaker, I'd likely stop reading a story if certain strong words were used, though I wouldn't mind the "equivalent" in an English story.

I don't mean those fantasy words like "honey pot" or whatever – reading those completely throws me off in both languages.

 

[XerXesXu]

'haruspices'. Came across that one today. Had to look it up, the context didn't help. It approximates to 'pollster'.

 

[AllenWoody]

For me, it's all a matter of context. I think there are stories where over-the-top words, or borderline offensive words, or cliche words can be appropriate.

"Hot" and "horny" make sense if you want your prose to resemble the way people actually speak, because people actually use these words all the time.

I'm fine with all the usual synonyms for vagina and penis. I tend not to use "cunt" because in my personal experience many women I know find it offensive and some have told me they don't want that part of their body referred to that way.

I treat cunt like saffron - used sparingly and only in just the right context. An entire story may unfold with mostly pussy and a sprinkling of slit, then near the end I throw in gash then cunt. Overuse them and you spoil the recipe.

 

[TheWritingGroup]

I can deal with words like "horny" but will nope out of a story if I see fluffy language used to describe female anatomy --(referring to her vagina as "her sex" or anything to do with flowers or honey.)

Or a clitoris being referred to as some sort of "button."

What if the character is describing herself and she is shy about the use of vulgar language? What if the person describing it is literally a poet?

-Eddie

 

[PapaRomantic]

I choose not to use "dick" because my junior high principal was named Dick and he was a real dick and when I read it in erotic literature, I too often think of him. He wasn't erotic at all.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

I think everyone has personal preferences for intimate language. I really prefer pussy over cunt, probably because cunt is such a widely used insult here in the UK.

That's why sometimes it's great to read a story by a writer who has similar preferences to you!

Completely agree. Cunt is a harsh word and while not commonly used as an insult on this side of the pond, it is used more as an insult than anything else.
Vagina always sounds too clinical... same with penis.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Completely agree. Cunt is a harsh word and while not commonly used as an insult on this side of the pond, it is used more as an insult than anything else.
Vagina always sounds too clinical... same with penis.

There's a prissiness with some people about that which is definitely cultural. I had a story reviewed by the infamous Stacnash where she took me to task for six uses of the word cunt, but here's the irony: it was an anal story, with something like fifty uses of ass. She was quite happy about that, but ooo, cunt, how vulgar! Who the fuck says vulgar, nowadays? Anyway.

Mind you, if I wrote, "I took her up the shitter," there might have been a whole 'nother reaction!

She'd be appalled if she actually came to Australia and found the true subtleties of the word.

My "never use" words are butt and dick. Makes everything sound like a Beavis and Butthead cartoon and a thirteen year old boy. They're more cringeworthy than any of the usual angst about panties vs knickers, cunt vs pussy.

 

[HordHolm]

When I wrote "The Countesses of Tannensdal", my goal was to emulate a style that a mid-19th century British gentleman might use in writing. So I avoided words like "cunt", "pussy", "cock".

Most of what I used is fairly straightforward: buttocks, shaft, mound, entrance and so on. But on glancing through the story just now, I did find "my tongue explored her secret vale". Slightly cringy.

Luckily, I follow up a few lines later with this, which I think more than makes up for it: "For an instant I wondered whether she was leaving and I would be reduced to cleaning my own barrel, as an acquaintance in the horse artillery described it."

Except, I did quite a lot of research on 19th century references to sex, anatomy, vulgarities and the like, and cunt and cock were right up there as go-to words. Those Victorians were a lot more blunt than we imagine 170 years later. Sure, they had plenty of flowery euphemisms, but fuck, cunt and cock were widespread. Pussy, OTOH, appears to have been largely unknown.

 

[AllenWoody]

Is 32DD a word?

 

[THBGato]

Is 32DD a word?

Excellent point. Stories where the writers feel compelled to give height, weight, age and cup size every time they introduce a character. Ug. That's a witness statement not erotica.

 

[Bramblethorn]

What if the character is describing herself and she is shy about the use of vulgar language? What if the person describing it is literally a poet?

-Eddie

Depends on the poet. Byron was partial to "cunt".

 

[WhiteTailDarkTip]

I find arse interesting. As a Yank, it's much more benign than ass, even to the point of being considered a polite alternative. Just curious, is the converse true across the pond?

I don't think you would never find someone in this country using 'ass' as an alternative to 'arse'. An ass is a donkey.
In the UK 'arse' is more utilised as a swear word and for slapstick humour eg. expressions such as 'arse over tit', 'to fall on your arse', 'arse about face', or 'you complete arse'. These are not remotely sexual. You might say 'nice arse' as a compliment but that's about the extent of it.
By contrast the US appears (to this observer) to focus much more on 'ass' as a sexual thing.

 

[Rob_Royale]

I've come to have a deep appreciation for the word 'cunt'. And I guess it's my wife's fault.
Without going into too much detail, many years ago, one night while initiating sex, she asked me, "Come give my little pussy some attention." I found it very sexy and told her so. Later in our coupling, caught up in the moment, she gave me some encouragement, using a word I'd never heard her use before. "Yes, fuck my cunt, baby."

I certainly did and found it wildly arousing. She doesn't do it often, but she still pulls it out of her bag of tricks when we're having really down and dirty, agressive sex, and she's really feeling good.

That is how I've used it in my stories. I use 'cunt' in the moment, when passions are highest, peaks are being reached. I suppose it might throw off some readers, but I've never had anyone complain.

 

[Writer61]

I don't think you would never find someone in this country using 'ass' as an alternative to 'arse'. An ass is a donkey. In the UK 'arse' is more utilised as a swear word and for slapstick humour eg. expressions such as 'arse over tit', 'to fall on your arse', 'arse about face', or 'you complete arse'. These are not remotely sexual.

As a fellow Brit, I completely agree.

You might say 'nice arse' as a compliment but that's about the extent of it.

Not so sure about that. I can't think of an alternative word in British English. What would you write instead of 'Fuck me in the arse'? Some might use 'bum' but not everyone.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Not so sure about that. I can't think of an alternative word in British English. What would you write instead of 'Fuck me in the arse'? Some might use 'bum' but not everyone.

Arse is the standard UK term once we get sexual, for sure. Bum is a bit more cutesy - women feeling naughty would be more likely to say it.

Though some people do get more lyrical:
I am that arsebandit. I lift those shirts. I’m a faggot-ass, fudge-packing, shit-stabbing uphill gardener. I dine at the downstairs restaurant, I dance at the other end of the ballroom. I’m Moses and the parting of the red cheeks.

(Stuart Allen Jones explaining he's a poof not a pervert, in QaF)

 

[NotWise]

Some of you seem so sensitive that I'm surprised you could ever read anything you didn't write.

 

[MillieDynamite]

While I find some words offensive, it doesn't preclude me from using them in my stories. It doesn't keep me from enjoying a story. I don't like the words used in real life. We don't write real life (or if we do, we don't admit it). Why would you say that? As far as I know, and I haven't read every post, it doesn't seem that anyone is claiming that the words they don't like ruin stories for them. At least, it doesn't seem so to me. I certainly use words I dislike (or hate) in stories. Either you're reading too much into things, or I'm reading too little in the statements. I write about murder, rape, and incest, but it doesn't mean I do any of those things in real life. Why would words be any different?

Some of you seem so sensitive that I'm surprised you could ever read anything you didn't write.

 

[NotWise]

While I find some words offensive, it doesn't preclude me from using them in my stories. It doesn't keep me from enjoying a story. I don't like the words used in real life. We don't write real life (or if we do, we don't admit it). Why would you say that? As far as I know, and I haven't read every post, it doesn't seem that anyone is claiming that the words they don't like ruin stories for them. At least, it doesn't seem so to me. I certainly use words I dislike (or hate) in stories. Either you're reading too much into things, or I'm reading too little in the statements. I write about murder, rape, and incest, but it doesn't mean I do any of those things in real life. Why would words be any different?

Millie, you're talking about words you use in writing, and the thread is about words people are bothered by in reading.

My reaction is as much to the dozen or so other threads on the same topic that I've read over the years. As topics go, there was a time when this topic was about as common as questions about the under-18 rule.

People have strong preferences for words, and I don't know why. That's especially true when when Brits are talking about Americanisms. Really, if 'knicker' and 'arse' are your preference and 'panty' or 'ass' is below your intellectual level, then don't read my stories. They won't be up to your standards.

Similarly, if 'cunt' offends you, then don't read my stories. You'll find the word salted here and there for its effect.

If you're actually bothered by a strong word in a story you read, I expect you to stop reading. If something about a story bothers me, then I stop reading.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Millie, you're talking about words you use in writing, and the thread is about words people are bothered by in reading.

My reaction is as much to the dozen or so other threads on the same topic that I've read over the years. As topics go, there was a time when this topic was about as common as questions about the under-18 rule.

People have strong preferences for words, and I don't know why. That's especially true when when Brits are talking about Americanisms. Really, if 'knicker' and 'arse' are your preference and 'panty' or 'ass' is below your intellectual level, then don't read my stories. They won't be up to your standards.

Similarly, if 'cunt' offends you, then don't read my stories. You'll find the word salted here and there for its effect.

If you're actually bothered by a strong word in a story you read, I expect you to stop reading. If something about a story bothers me, then I stop reading.

It doesn't offend me, it's just a word I prefer not to use outside exceptional circumstances.
The difference between pussy and cunt is like the difference between saying, "I need to use the bathroom" and "I need to take a shit".
They both describe the same thing, but one is much cruder than the other. I'm not offended if you announce that you need to take a shit, but I don't see the point in being crude for no reason.

If you are using cunt to "turn it up to 11" as in the example Rob_Royale shared then it makes total sense.
And of course this is from an American English perspective.
If you are writing a story set in London with British characters things are different.
If you are writing a story set in America with American characters using "arse" and "knickers" makes you sound silly and pretentious.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

I'm not bothered by any words. And the words my characters use are what I assume they'd use based on personality. And honestly; cock is not something I hear anywhere near common in real life. Even with some crossdressers using it at the parties I used to go to, just over a decade, it's still rare to zero.