by Simon Wright

Created on: May 08, 2007   Last Updated: May 14, 2007

'Zestful' according to Stephen King. I've been reading his book, 'On writing', and he states in it that he's never (to his knowledge) used the word 'zestful' and hopes never to! This is an instance of a writer making a personal choice on words that he will never use due to personal dislike.

On a more serious note, another example of self censorship is where writers commit to avoiding words or phrases that they consider either to be weak or cliched. Beginner writers, for example, are often warned to avoid weak words such as 'quite' or 'somewhat'. If 'John was quite annoyed', it is more powerful to say 'John was annoyed' or change it to 'John was peeved'.

Beyond self censorship, where words are deemed forbidden, it is usually because someone else has said that they can't be used. The main example will be where a publisher issues guidelines. For example, if you are writing a kids book, you probably won't be allowed to include swear words.

There may also be words that are forbidden by culture, where censorship is in place.

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