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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/32337
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/32337
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Every person has a _style_ in which he or she talks. If your characters read like people who would use words such as _ass_ than it would be weird if they talked about their _posterior_. But if your narrator would normally use words such _posterior_ it would be weird to use _ass_.

You can switch between the words as often as you like, or as often as is _necessary_ to be more precise, as long as it doesn't conflict with the voice of the _character_ currently speaking.

Most of the books I can think of at the top of my head would use a more "cowardly" approach for their narrator and a more direct approach for the characters who are for example part of the story as it unfolds. You may talk differently in any situation compared to when you have had time to reflect on it and think about how you want to communicate something.

**Basically my tip is: don't worry about _vulgar_ versus _cowardly_ - worry about the voice of the person who is uttering the word. Think about the current situation and use what would be normal for them.**

Or not normal, depending on what kind of emotion you want to convey. Someone who is always choosing every word carefully and suddenly throwing around expletives might convey a lot of stress for example.

You should also think about how different the characters are. _Gluteus Maximus_ and _posterior_ on the same page from different people might feel okay to the reader, but there is a huge difference between a medical term like _Gluteus Maximus_ and _ass_.

Last, but not least, think about your audience. For example: do you want to write a book that heavily uses explicit words like _ass_? Then write those words and don't back down. Eliminate the _cowardly_ words. Are you writing for a broader audience? It might be good to occasionally switch between different types.

Original score: 1