Writing, Self-Publishing, Book Marketing

Beware of the Exclamation Point

January 14, 2010 at 9:27 am katemorgan1 Leave a comment

I thought while Melissa was doing this great series on starting a book this week I’d jump in with a quick tip to keep in mind while you’re writing.

I have a pet peeve that I’m often guilty of myself which is strange because I usually try to avoid doing my own pet peeves. But this one is there, hanging around and getting in my writing. I’m speaking of exclamation points. Of all punctuation, the exclamation point is the one that requires the most sensitive handling. Too much and your readers are annoyed and the effectiveness of the exclamation point is wasted. Too little and your writing seems dull and flat with no expression.

In her excellent book on proper punctuation use, Eats, Shoots and Leaves, author Lynne Truss has this to say about exclamation points.

“Ever since it came along, grammarians have warned us to be wary of the exclamation mark, mainly because, even when we try to muffle it with brackets (!), it still shouts, flashes like neon, and jumps up and down. In the family of punctuation, where the full stop is daddy and the comma is mommy, and the semicolon quietly practices the piano with crossed hands, the exclamation point is the big attention-deficit brother who gets over-excited and breaks things and laughs too loudly.” (Truss, page 138).

Whenever you type or write an exclamation point stop and consider if it serves the sentence or paragraph you just wrote, or is it being the “big attention-deficit brother.” An exclamation point is used to show strong emotion or emphasis. If the sentence you just wrote doesn’t require strong emotion it should not end in an exclamation point. Here are some correct and incorrect ways to use exclamation points:

Correct:

• Get attention: Look out! There’s a car speeding toward you!
• Surprise/Excitement: Oh my goodness, what a generous gift!
• Shock: The president has been shot!
• Urgency: Watch out for the icy roads!
• Anger: The new smoking ban is completely absurd!
• Astonishment: I cannot believe she is pregnant!

Incorrect:

• This orange is the best I’ve ever had!! It is so sweet and juicy!!!
• You’ll have the most fun you ever had in your life!!
• See you tomorrow!!

As you can see from these examples, the exclamation point has its place in writing. Without it, “Look out, there’s a car speeding toward you” falls completely flat. Be thankful for the exclamation point, but be wary of it too. Keep it in your back pocket and use it only when it’s really necessary.

Happy writing! (correct or incorrect use? You tell me J)

- Kate

Entry filed under: Uncategorized, Writing. Tags: exclamation point, writing tips.