IS THERE EVER AN APPROPRIATE MOMENT IN YOUR WRITING TO USE EXCLAMATION POINTS?!!!!!
Not if it's written well.
If you feel the need to use an exclamation point in your writing, revisit your word choices.
"If you pick the right words and shorten your sentence structure at the desired moment, your emphasis will come across without exclamation points" (WRITING YA FICTION FOR DUMMIES, p. 172).
Challenge yourself to not use the exclamation point. Rethink and revise instead.
Do you agree or disagree?
As long as we can still use them in comments and tweets!! See :)
ReplyDeleteBTW - I personally love the exclamation point!! :) I think it's tall and slender and jumping for joy!! It is the happiest of all the punctuation marks.
ReplyDeleteMargo,
ReplyDeleteI love the exclamation mark and am a frequent abuser of it in my blog comments, twitter posts, and Facebook stories. However, I found only two (maybe three?) when I went through my first round of edits.
And I sat and fretted over leaving or cutting each one.
Great post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Christi Corbett
I agree. Don't like exclamation points much. It just pushes a sentence over the top. I do add it after "Thanks!" though...
ReplyDeleteHi, my name is Regina and I have an exclamation point problem!
ReplyDeleteI use buckets of exclamation points. I take my cue from Suzanne Collins. If you don't believe me when I say "Ms. Collins uses buckets of exclamation points, please revisit 'The Hunger Games.'"
ReplyDeleteThus, I win.
I like to see caps before I like an exclamation point.
ReplyDelete"MOM. Please stop. You're embarrassing me." :D
I find it annoying when they're overused - I don't think any statement is so shocking it deserves twenty exclamation marks after it - but I don't see why we should avoid using them altogether.
ReplyDeleteGrover
Inane Ramblings
I guess I know better but I love it,anyway. Although, I nice reminder to maybe cut back,especially when writing more seriously.
ReplyDeleteFor me, exclamation points are used only in my blogs and blog comments!!! Other than that, I am pretty much a period and question mark sorta gal.
ReplyDeleteI was told by an editor that there should be no more than two exclamation marks per page. Even I think that is too many. Once, waaay back when I was writing my first book, I had an exclamation point after practically every sentence. I mean it. I thought each and every dialogue exchange was that important. I since then have rewritten that manuscript four times, and I doubt that there is a single exclamation mark in the whole book. I believe you can write a sentence to express the desired emphasis--most of the time. But there is a difference between this: No. And this: No!
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree. Too many drive me nuts and lose their affect. And most of the time, strong writing works better without it anyway. I have to admit that I do tend to use them way more than I should on blogs/twitter/facebook. Something about social media brings out my !!! craziness.
ReplyDeleteStill working on that bad habit but...
ReplyDelete(See, no exclamation point. Now if I can just get past those ellipsis.)
I agree. Nothing makes me more mad than multiple exclamation points in a row.
ReplyDeleteI hate being told what I may use or what I may not. Opinions like this are imposed by those who think themselves experts. In truth, they aren't. Any half competent writer is quite capable deciding when and where to use exclamation marks (as we call them in the UK) or not.
ReplyDeleteI agree. And to get them out of my system, I will use the exclamation marks here, if you don't mind. :)
ReplyDeleteAgreed !!!!!!!!!!!!
Silvia @ Silvia Writes
During at least one editing pass, I usually have to go through and find exclamation points. If I leave them in, it's usually in dialogue.
ReplyDeleteWhat's this??!! No exclamation points!! I'm slightly addicted to them. Not so much in my writing, but definitely on blogger. But I do think there are moments in dialogue when an exclamation point hits the spot. :)
ReplyDeleteI only ever have them in dialogue.
ReplyDeleteOh dear! I just love exclamation points--the more, the better. I really try not to use them in my books, but I fill my emails with them!!! Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeleteMary Montague Sikes
I agree that they are often used when they shouldn't be. I try to avoid them, but I reckon they still have a purpose: to show when a piece of dialogue is an exclamation. Isn't that the point? :)
ReplyDeleteI like one in a rare instance. Overusing them results in diminishing their impact. Wonderful theme. :-)
ReplyDeleteI think the only time I would use them like that is if I was showing an email or text message, or on a rare occasion if they were in a paragraph all on their own :)
ReplyDeleteI have an old high school "novel" I wrote that is riddled with excessive exclamation marks. it's quite hilarious to read back over.
:) guilty here.
ReplyDeleteOh my, how can I agree when I use them all the time!?!? I don't use them so much when I am writing stories, but rather to emphasize my feelings when I post in Facebook or write emails. Now I'm wondering why exactly I do that. I'm enjoying this A to Z punctuation challenge!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post, I re-read my F post and discovered I had used the ! three times! I think I could do away with one, but, in my opinion, two of the dastardly exclamation points were necessary. I'm trying to think what G will be...
ReplyDeleteI disagree but then I don't write YA so maybe there's a difference. I think using the exclamation point allows a writer to get the point across without having to used tags like "he yelled" or "She cried" and that is a good thing in some cases.
ReplyDeleteI do think it can be and have myself been guilty of over use at times. Also I loved your comment about it being the happiest of all punctuation marks :)
Yes, I wholly agree on this one. I'm doing grammar as well and using exclamation points for X. I'll be saying the exact same thing. Great posts. I'm glad I found your blog today.
ReplyDeleteI used to over use exclamation points, but now I'm a fan of the interrobang, and tend to use that more than necessary!
ReplyDelete