“Wow – you look like a librarian yet swear like a sailor.”
When I was in my twenties, I heard this more times than I can count. Back then, I really didn’t give a …well, you know what I mean. Now that I am older, I don’t swear nearly as much as I used to. Though my idea of how backpackers talk and interact with each other was formed by my own experiences. And most of the backpackers I met on the road swore as much – or more – than I did.
Only after releasing Down and Out in Kathmandu did I realize not everyone appreciates swearing in fiction. Several comments on social media and polite emails from reviewers prompted me to cut out most of the offensive words in my backpacker mystery and republish it on July 31, 2018.
It’s still not one-hundred percent clean, though now the naughty words have a purpose. For example, I seriously doubt anyone threatened with imminent physical torture would say “oh, poop.” (Don’t worry all the violent acts in my novel are implied, not graphically described.)
If you are offended by a few well-placed “f**ks” or “s**ts”, Down and Out in Kathmandu is probably not the book for you. Luckily I learned to temper my potty mouth while writing the rest of my novels…
Down and Out in Kathmandu
Zelda wants to teach children English and ‘find herself’ in Kathmandu. Ian wants to get stoned and trek the Himalayas. Tommy wants to get rich by smuggling diamonds.
How their stories collide will leave you on the edge of your seat!
Travel from the dusty, tout-filled streets and holy sites of Nepal to the sultry metropolises and picture-perfect beaches of Thailand, as Zelda and Ian try to outsmart the smugglers and escape Asia alive.
A fast-paced, thrilling travel mystery sure to captivate readers thirsty for some armchair adventure. Travel to Nepal and Thailand with three twenty-somethings as they fumble their way towards self-discovery and perhaps a bit of wisdom.
Down and Out in Kathmandu: A Backpacker Mystery is the perfect book for lovers of backpacker fiction and (mis)adventure novels.
Paperback or eBook available on Amazon, iBooks, Barnes & Noble NOOK, Kobo, Smashwords, Google Play, or your favorite retailer.
Down and Out in Kathmandu is also for sale at these Dutch bookstores and gift shops: Caffe il Momento, Reisboekhandel Pied a Terre, and the De Amsterdamse Boekhandel.
My first crime novel was pretty sweary and my publisher’s never said a word about it but when it came out I did get comments and I was startled how upset people were by what seemed to me, ahem, pretty tame stuff. Some people hate it. Some people couldn’t care less. It’s finding the balance. I did work for quite a few years in a publisher’s warehouse with someone who swore prolifically and very imaginatively so I had a sort of immunity to shock about it!
I was also quite shocked when readers complained about the swearing in my first novel! It didn’t even occur to me that some people would be offended. Since then, I’ve tried to be aware of the my word choices, but it can be difficult to avoid a swear word in certain situations. My father was a sailor and swore like one, so I guess I was immune as well! British profanity is my favorite sort – your wide selection of choices and creative use of expletives is unrivaled. 🙂