Blogger: Rachelle Gardner
When I was an editor, I found myself the heartless eliminator of … exclamation points!!! Seriously, I developed a hatred for them! People tend to WAY overuse them! Not to mention italics and bold, and that oh-so-effective use of ALL CAPS!!!!!!!
Here’s a hint to avoid coming across as amateur: Use the above devices sparingly in writing intended for publication. Even in blogs and emails, be careful. (Although I admit to liberal use of exclamations in email.)
Author Dean Koontz is quoted as saying, “…when we are born, we are granted by God a specific number of exclamation points. When we use them up, it is our time to go.”
If you tend to use a plethora of exclamation points, do a search-and-replace in your manuscript and put a period in place of every single one of them. Yep, every one. Then you can go back and add an exclamation point here and there if you really must. But VERY . . . SPARINGLY. Tell yourself that every exclamation point is going to cost you ten readers. (!!!!!)
Same with other means of artificial emphasis: italics and ALL CAPS. Your writing should be so effective by itself that the emphasis isn’t necessary. Italics are used for specific purposes, such as to indicate a foreign word or a thought that isn’t spoken aloud. As for ALL CAPS, we’re all better off not going there. People don’t like it when you yell at them.
And how about that “habit” of using quotation marks to emphasize “something.” Hey, you all know “what I mean.”
As for bold, don’t ever use it in running text! (It’s OKAY for headers!)
Isn’t THIS irritating!!!!
What are your thoughts on exclamation points and other kinds of punctuation and emphasis in writing?
TWEETABLES
Every time you use an exclamation point, a fairy dies. Or something like that. Click to Tweet.
Exclamation points! Italics! ALL CAPS! Signs of amateur writing? You decide. Click to Tweet.
Image copyright: / 123RF Stock Photo
Harry Potter Covers the World
Wow!!!! “Guilty as charged.” MY. BAD.
I completely agree with you. I so love the search feature. “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial.” I think Paul said that. 🙂
I so COMPLETELY agree with you, Rachelle!!!!! Exclamation points in books tend to drive me “crazy.”
But seriously, I have learned to greatly reduce my use of those fun, but annoying punctuation marks. I find that when I see them too frequently in a book, I want to stop reading it because they drive me a little bit nuts when used too often.
I try not to use too many italicized words. But, the things that tend to sneak into my writing are em-dashes and ellipses. I’m working on not using those too frequently.
Oh how I love ellipses…so very fun!
I use em-dashes and ellipses, too, but only in dialog, and only when it’s the best way to convey what I want. I’m hoping my beta readers will let me know if I’ve over-used them! (Exclamation point used here to indicate tone of voice–not something I’d do outside of informal email or blog comments.)
My name is Jennifer, and I have an ellipses proble…m.
I like it Jennifer! Made me … laugh!
Laughing out loud, Jennifer. 😉
I’m so glad I’m not alone. 🙂
My Bible, Thomas S. Kane’s “The New Oxford Guide to Writing,” leads me to believe that punctuation is so vital to good prose that its final Part VII is dedicated to it. (I realize that common usage of book titles is to underline, but that was followed in the days before computer word processors.) In the part’s intro, Kane’s explanation concerning the “Rules” of Punctuation as follows:
“It would be nice if punctuation could be reduced to a set of clear, simple directions: always use a comma here, a semicolon there, a dash in such-and-such a place. But it cannot. Much depends on what you want to do. In fact, punctuation is a mixed bag of absolute rules, general conventions, and individual options.”
Kane goes on to describe two categories: Stops and Other Marks.
In digesting my bible, I took to heart everything about the accepted use of punctuation that Kane describes. I believe that professional writers should be totally familiar with these “rules,” and take departure from them only when personal emphasis is desired, and these instances should be limited. It’s the mark of a professional.
BTW, April 2 was the fiftieth anniversary of the movie “The Sound of Music,” and FOX network interviewed Julie Andrews to observe the milestone. One of the things she said seems priceless: “Amateurs practice until they get it right; professional practice until they can’t get it wrong.” Use of proper punctuation falls into this category too.
How are we going to deal with the interrobang‽
Someone told me only to use an exclamation point if the character is actually shouting. That has really helped my writing. But then something funny happened. I exchanged pages with another writer and when I got my pages back there was a note: “more exclamation points” he insisted. I just laughed and continued as before.
I’ve been fortunate enough to help judge a few entries for a writing competition. And no. I will not divulge any secrets.
But ALL CAPS IS BASICALLY HOW PEOPLE TALK IN A COMBAT SITUATION. BECAUSE, DANGER!!!!
Not, my friends, in a conversation in a hallway.
And! These!! Things!!! Are!!!! PRECIOUS!!!!
Bangs head on table.
Ugh…
I use quite a few Navajo words in my books, so hello to the italics. But, I’m happy to report that I don’t overuse them to the point of needing a set of Rosetta Stone cds.
I did read an e-pubbed book that ended each chapter with a mini-sermon in bold font. Nooooooo, it TOTALLY did not haul me out of the story and dump me in a very legalistic Sunday School class taught by women in polyester pantsuits. Not. At. All.
**BTW, Andrew’s internet is still out***
Thanks for the Andrew update; I was concerned. Please tell Andrew that we miss him and hope he his involuntary social-media fast is restful and productive.
I hate using exclamation points unless I’m texting my sister. Then they’re imperative. I think an area where it might be permissible to bend some of these rules is in blogging. Even there the rules should be enforced in general, but blog writing is often less formal (depending on the theme or topic) and more conversational than other types of writing. Still, even with blogs, I get irritated seeing too many cutesy punctuation choices, and I try not to get adorable with italics or exclamation points myself.
I like blogs that don’t look like 14 year old girls wrote them. No offence to 14 year old girls, BTW.
Ah, fourteen-year-old girls. They blog in exclamation points because they think, feel, and exist in them.
Love the first two sentences of your reply.
I liked this!!!! Thanks for KEEPING US on the right path.
I read somewhere never to use more than three exclamation points per novel. I have a suggestion for a future post if it hasn’t been covered: proper usage of ellipses in dialogue. This is a great post, thank you.
I’ve got the exclamation points under control but I’m still an ellipse junkie. And then there’s those pesky. Single. Word. Sentences.
Really?
Oh yes. Single. Word. Sentences. They certainly deserve a spot in this conversation. Great contribution.
I’ve become ruthless about removing exclamation points in my manuscripts. It drives my daughter nuts. She fights hard to have me put one in a story when she feels it’s warranted, but I cringe every time I do.
That said, I make liberal use of exclamation points in email, Facebook comments and the like. I love getting them in emails, too! I counted three in my email from you yesterday, Rachelle, and they made me smile!!!
Oh no, Rachelle! Not exclamation points!!
But, how can we live?
Joking aside, the wonderful personality guru, Florence Littauer, explains that exclamation points are a natural expression of the choleric personality. As powerful, forceful people, they automatically speak louder, give orders, take command and push their way to the front. Naturally, when they are then writing, exclamation points appear immediately and often. (Not to mention Bold and italics, lol.)
Unfortunately, these positive attributes of Generals are often displeasing to the general populace, who have a tendency to call such friends, co-workers and family bossy, insufferable, belligerent, and control monsters. Which is usually true.
So, what are my thoughts on exclamation points? Be aware of what you are dealing with if you see a lot of them used in a manuscript. Tigers don’t change their spots. But if you are looking for a strong, dynamic person, sign him on!
No, I don’t think they are a sign of amateur writing, just the real person showing up.
Wanda,
I like your thoughts. Exclamation points should be used to show strong emotion, and some people feel strong emotion with every other sentence.
If it is an author’s intent to wear out his readers with his emotions, then exclamations may be the way to go.
I like to tell authors the effect their punctuation will have on their readers and then let them decide. My main objective is to see authors be intentional and achieve their personal goals. That’s my style of editing.
And I learned a new word today.
Ellipsis!!!
Thank you everyone!
Elmore Leonard said you are allowed one exclamation point per 100k words.
And now he’s dead so he should know!!!
It’s really hard to eliminate them when you think in them!!!!!!!!!
Ahhh. Italics. I use them sparingly. But …
And I have researched this fairly well, italics for inner thought?
Something I’m working on has quite a bit of it, and it is necessary to the story. I can’t explain fully, but really, it is.
That’s how I am doing it presently anyway. Seems to be working out.
Thanks for the reminder.
I understand some publishers require italics for thoughts, so I guess it depends on the style they prefer.
Something to keep in mind. Thank you very much Janet.
Agreed. I so wanted to put an exclamation point after that word.
I was once blasted by a writing contest judge for my overuse of the ellipsis. He said it was distracting. After reading his comments, I was forced to face my obsession, and shave them all down to periods. He was absolutely right.
I was overusing and misusing. I still sprinkle an occasional ellipsis, but sparingly and appropriately. Critique well-taken, and good writing advice is golden. Of course, that’s why I follow you. There again I had to use restraint with the exclamation point thing. Golden.
Pretty sure I closed the cover of a novel once when on page three the twenty-something heroine bit someone’s head off IN CAPS. I’m also pretty sure I’ve walked straight past the author’s section at the library ever since.
I am a firm believer in their use when it is an exclamation. Here is an example: What a wonderful day! See? I exclaimed. There is no subject and no predicate, so to indicate my awareness of this faux pas, I use up one of my !!!!!s. True exclamations are a type of incomplete sentence, and require the exclamation point. So there!
Amen, Bill!
Yes Bill! If we all spoke in monotone, it would be quite boring 😉
Thanks for your post. I don’t think this applies to blogging. Blogging is so much more informal, and many times you need to use a lot of exclamation points, or caps, or bold and italics for emphasis, emotion, humor, etc. That all works there, but not in a book. I was once a guilty exclamation point-er, and an editor pointed it out to me. I still hear her voice every time go to type one. 😉
I’m guilty! 🙂
Hello, and thank you for the advice. In my writing, when I quote a verse from the Bible and want to emphasize a particular word or phrase, do you have a recommendation for a good way to do that? So far, I’ve been underlining. Thanks.
Word choice in writing is paramount while on the path to everywhere. Does a protagonist emerge or enter? Is his environment sterile or mystical? Is his humor salacious? Are his adversaries hiding in dark alleys? Squiggle the pen, be audacious, and walk on the tightrope of simplicity.
These are helpful points.
I have come to believe the advice of the gang at Copyblogger that there are differences between writing for print agents for the web. This includes length of paragraphs and sentences, as well as headings, bullet lists and sometimes bold and italics.
Their point, which there is eye tracking research to support, is that people skim online articles more than they read them. They recommend making posts skimable with these elements. Readers who get the big picture easily and want more will read more deeply.
I find it is a useful aid to engagement, and it is good for me as a writer to adapt to the medium, just like I would to a new genre.
for “agents” read “and”. Some combination of clumsy fingers and autocorrect. Sorry.
Amen!
Rachelle, thanks for the helpful hints. I can’t tell you how happy I am to learn that I was doing most of those correctly. Wheew, big smile, right here. :0D
I don’t use exclamation points, except in dialogue, because that’s the way the character would speak. Even then it’s very rare. I never use all caps or bold. I do use italics to distinguish an interior monologue from the narrative section above or below it, but I suspect that’s not what you mean. However, I am about to comb my manuscript for those pesky emphasis italics. Thanks!
I suppose an exclamation point is a bit redundant if it is followed by something like: he screamed into the telephone and got it wet. The reader gets the idea and the exclamation point feels like a dilution of the words, a delay, and if there are 3 or more, something vegetative growing on the page.
I do love italics now and have used them sparingly in my recent 85k word project, I like them for their nuance possibilities when subtlety is at play but not for sarcasm which I have little use for anyway.