Yesterday I read an article at Not The Bee about how Microsoft has added a new feature to Word. It will now alert you when you've used words that might be considered offensive.
First, let me say that if you're a writer and you're worried about offending people, you probably should find something else to do with your life. It doesn't matter what you write, you'll offend someone. I know if I read a book that had been bashed into mush with this 'anti-offensiveness' feature, I would be offended because I would DNF it and feel like my time had been wasted. Wasting my time offends me no end.
I read that story and laughed my ass off. Right now, I'm in the middle of editing a 106K word fantasy manuscript. The mages use Master/Mistress as titles. Master Eenan and his sister, Mistress Uuwen would be aghast at being called Expert and Lover. And they might just blast your butts back into the shrouds where you belong. Eenan might be an expert, but Uuwen ain't no lover, she's a fighter. ROFL.
See? Silly stuff there, folks.
Lucky for me, my version of Word is so old that Microsoft washed its hands of me years ago. I don't remember how long ago it was I got a notice they'd no longer be supporting that version, but I shrugged and thought 'no skin off my... err, nose'. Now I'm genuinely glad I can't receive updates. I don't want that woke crap on my computer. Hell, I'd switch to WordPerfect and tell MS to kiss my ass if switching word processing and spreadsheet programs at this stage wouldn't be a totally pain in my buns.
Point here, folks? I don't let anyone tell me how or what to write. My editor and my betas can suggest things, but ultimately, I decide. And after that first editor decided it would be good to school me after my use of the word 'spic' - one instance in dialogue, spoken by an asshole - I switched editors to someone who would be less offendsensitive.
Watering things down to avoid the potential of hurting someone's feelings is wrong. In the end, it will hurt the story. And we're here to write and stay true to the stories to the best of our abilities. At least, that's why I'm here.
So, to Woke Word... keep your hands off my stories. If I have to, I'll write the damn things by hand before I'll ever let you tell me what words are okay to use and which ones are 'bad'.
I'm not sure WordPefect even exists anymore. I have Office 365 and there was a massive update last night but this morning, after reading your post of MeWe, I checked. I don't hve that feature yet. I'll figure out someway to turn it off. Or someone will.
ReplyDeleteYa know, I kinda wanna write a "Woke" romance using all the approved pronouns, ie. "they" and all the other BS. I'd have to publish it under a HUGE anonymous pen name and not on Zon or D2 accounts. And I'd totlly market it as "Romance for the Woke Generation!" What a freaking travesty. Don't get me started on Big Tech and Big Biz and their politics. I'm searching for a "generic" answer to Diet Coke so I can boycott them for supporting the China Olympics despite the human rights atrocities.
All right. Getting off my soapbox now. I need to rewrite a funeral scene so it kicks me in the gut instead being a...travelogue. Yeah. That boring. And despite the need for new words, BAD new words are kinda a waste of time. LOLOL
Stay warm this weekend. We're supposed to get at least a dusting of snow but 50 mph winds and a high of 26. That means brutal windchills! Later, tater. 🥰
I bought a student version of MSWord when I was forced to get a new computer, and promptly turned off ALL the updates. Woke or not, having stuff change suddenly is toooooooo annoying.
ReplyDeleteMaster/expert and mistress/lover make me laugh. Not the same, folks. All possible nuances are stripped out.