Today’s special guest is the fabulous
Nicky Peacock! Nicky is a
multi-published author who writes Young Adult and Adult paranormal romance,
horror and urban fantasy. She also a charming Brit with a stingy spot for British
stereotypes and she some advice on how to avoid them. She also offering
something I was delighted to read—genuine British curse words fresh from Her
Majesty’s biscuit tin! I hope you’ll enjoy the list as much as I did.
Risking a stereotype here… This is a
picture of Nicky.
She’s gorgeous, no munter is she. If you
don’t know what a munter is keep reading and you’ll find out. I’m a bit envious.
I wish I were a classic English country maiden with the face of an angel, a
cascade of flaxen waves, stormy blue eyes the color of the Thames on a frozen
morn, a complexion like buttermilk and an insouciant curl of the lip that hints
chase-me-I’m-worth-it.
Nicky looks sweet and innocent but she’s
got a biting dark sense of humor and among other things is included the “Fifty
Shades of Decay—Zombie Erotica Anthology”. She’s British so its safe to assume
she prefers knives to guns, so watch out if you see her reaching into her boot.
Here’s Nicky Peacock’s own words,
sharing a little fun with us:
Don’t fall for stereotypes in romantic
fiction.
I don’t
know about you, but one of the biggest turn-offs when reading a romance is when
you find yourself presented with your own nationality’s stereotype. You know
the ones I mean: French man wearing stripy shirt and onion necklace, Spanish
swarthy gent who fights bulls, and casual Italian mobster who runs either a
pizza place or ice cream parlor. Sometimes, it’s hard to stay away from them in
writing – after all, if it’s not your nationality then this is all you know of
them– but it shouldn’t be. These clichés can be avoided quite easily with a bit
of research and a dollop of confidence.
So, I’m
English. And I hate reading about an English character who has a stiff upper
lip, bowler hat, drinks too much tea and has yellow teeth. It happens more
often than you think and I try not take it personally, but sometimes it even
stops me reading that book out of principle. These days with eBook popularity
soaring, any writer, regardless of their nationality, cannot afford to alienate
any nation’s readers. So what can you do? Well, if it’s a main character, you
could ideally take the opportunity to have a sneaky holiday to their country
and mingle first hand with its natives. Experience the whole culture and
perhaps be inspired with new characteristics and story lines. Okay, so not all
of us have the time or money to do that. But there are a couple of things you
can do:
Rent
a movie.
World
cinema offers a peak into that country’s people and customs. Have a look online
for a movie that you’ll enjoy from that county, sit back and let it inspire
you. Do be aware though, that some movies themselves are going to be a bit
cliché themselves so pick movies that are well-made and at least appear to have
some credibility. If they are made in the country of origin then stereotypes
shouldn't be included (unless they are trying to be funny!). These movies can
give an excellent look into that culture's society and the people dwelling
within.
Read
a book.
Tourist
guides can be bought online and offer snatches of information about the
country. Do try and buy those that are written in the country itself. There are
even online sites that can give you virtual tours of places with commentary.
Getting a feel for the culture can do wonders for your character.
Read a
book set in that country by a native writer - again they shouldn't include
stereotypes unless they are being facetious and can give you not only the feel
for the people but also some dialogue tips too.
Ask a
question, or several.
Social
media has made interacting with other countries so much easier now. Twitter and
Facebook are particularly good for making contacts for research (and not just
for nationalities) finding another writer from the country your character is
from and asking some poignant questions will make your characters really come
alive and be accessible and comfortable for your readers. Fellow writers
shouldn’t have a problem with talking to you, especially if you offer to return
the favour if they ever need it.
The Englishman
cometh!
Okay, so
I’m English, so at the least I should give you a few pointers about writing
English characters.
*Please
no Dick Van Dyke accents!
*Not
everyone is from London. We may be a small country but there’s more to us than
our capital.
*We’re
not all Cockney gangsters – regardless of what Guy Ritchie would have you
believe.
*Only a
minority of the English are upper class, so no watching hours and hours of
Downton Abbey and assuming we’re all like Lady Mary and Lord Grantham.
*We
don’t just drink tea – although it is my main beverage of choice! I do drink
coffee and hot chocolate too.
*Most of
us have excellent dental hygiene.
*Unless
your book is set in the Victorian era, no top hats, cravats or monocles please.
*The
fair majority do not have butlers and maids.
*We
prefer knives to guns here - more because of accessibility than any real
violent standards
*We're
not all villains - although we're not all angels either!
A great
way to ensure an English character is believe-able, yet not insulting, is
simply by changing their choice of words to make them more English. So here is
a little US to UK list, as a bit of a cheat sheet:
US
UK
Cookie
Biscuit
Biscuit
Scone
Gas
Petrol
Pants
Trousers
Sweater
Jumper
Trunk
Boot
Hood
Bonnet
Beer
Larger (pale) Bitter (dark)
Fries
Chips
Chips
Crisps
911
999
Elevator
Lift
Drugstore
Pharmacy
Dumpster
Bin
Eraser
Rubber
Faucet
Tap
Frosting
Icing
Hickey
Love Bite
Playing
Hooky
Skiving
License
Plate
Number Plate
Mom
Mum
Public
Holiday
Bank Holiday
Rest
Room
Toilet
Sweat
Pants
Track Bottoms
Trash
Can
Dust Bin
Vacuum
Hoover
Zip
Code
Postcode
Purse
Handbag
There’s
probably a hell of lot more variations and of course you also get regional
slang words in certain English counties. As this is an adult site I’m also
going to supply you with a list of English curse words, or swears, + insults
too (some of these are the same, but I just like writing them!) I've included a
brief explanation in brackets.
Arsehole (asshole)
Billy no-mates (someone
with no friends)
Bint/ Scrubber/ Skank/
Trollop/ Slapper/ Duffer (woman of loose morals)
Bollocks/
Nuts/ Balls
Bugger (similar to
fuck)
Chav (someone who
thinks they’re cool when they’re not)
Cobblers (similar to
rubbish)
Cock-up/ Balls Up
(making a mistake)
Codger (elderly
person)
Div/ Pillock/ Plonker/
Prat/ Wally (idiot)
Dodgy
(something under-hand)
Git (an insult with a
touch of jealousy – usually used on men)
Gordon Bennett!
(translation similar to Jesus Christ!)
Gormless (dumb ass)
Grotty/ Manky (gross)
Jog-on/
Piss off (Fuck off)
Knob
(Dick)
Minger (unattractive
lady)
Mucky (dirty/ also
with sexual conatations)
Muppet
(although this not technically a curse word, its still used in a derogatory
fashion)
Munter (very
unattractive lady)
Naff/ Pish/ Poxy
(crap)
Numpty (more
affectionate term for fool)
Shite (shit)
If you
are writing English characters and would like to talk to a fellow author/ ask a
few culture questions, then drop by my Facebook page and friend me https://www.facebook.com/nicky.peacock.10 and
send me a message -
About
the author: Nicky Peacock is an English author living in the UK and can be
found online:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nickyp_author
Face
Book Page: https://www.facebook.com/NickyPeacockYaBooks
Amazon
Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Nicky-Peacock/e/B007UH2ACW/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_4
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/nickypauthor/
Tumblr: http://nickypeacock.tumblr.com/
Share
this blog or you’ll be a Billy-no-mates!
Thank
you Nicky for a fun blog!
XXOO Kat
Thank you Nicky, for bringing some fun to 7SS. Your books look like dark wonderful fun too.
ReplyDeleteGreat blog, Nicky. We use similar words in New Zealand too, since we're a Commonwealth country.
ReplyDeleteHi Shelly, I would sure love to hear a few choice Kiwi curse words...hint, hint. : )
DeleteHi, Nicky,
ReplyDeleteYour blog has me starting my day with a smile!! Very fun!
Mr. Leon and I have adopted "Gormless" It's the perfect fit in so many situations, "Look at that fool he's "gormless!"
DeleteI just loved this Nicky. I'd never heard "jog-on" before. It makes me want to write a story around it! :) Best luck with your novels.
ReplyDeleteHi Rose! See the British Empire has so much to give us! The world needs Brit-wit!
DeleteHi there, Katalina and your fellow literary lovelies! Thank you for having me ;) That's the best description anyone has ever given me!
ReplyDeleteHope you all find the info useful.
Nicxx
Nicky you've got it all! Beauty, brains and great sense of humor!
DeleteThanks for sharing this fun blog with us, Nicky! Best of luck with your books. :)
ReplyDeleteHi Amber, I hope this blog gave you some new curse words to use and cherish!
DeleteWell shoot, I can see where I went wrong in my Regency Romance, I have pants instead of trousers.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I learned a lot. :)
Janice~
Hi Janice! This was fun wasn't it.
DeleteWhat a fun post! I knew some of the words but none of the curse words! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteMelissa
The curse words have come in so handy for me. I instantly loved a few of them right away, maybe I'm British at heart?
Delete