|
|
Our Mission Our Promise The Imprints Author Introduction Book Production & Sales Working With Your Editor
Manuscript Submission Instruction & Guidelines
Comments From The Industry & Authors About American Book.
Company Information Press Releases Review Book Requests
Information for obtaining Subsidiary Rights & Use Permissions.
We Welcome Your Questions & Comments Please E-Mail Us Here
|
|
Avoid
Exclamation Marks!
The
exclamation mark is an enthusiastic bit of punctuation that appears at
the end of far too many sentences. In their eagerness to show their
emotions on the page, many writers carelessly splash these marks about
as if there were no price to pay for their use. Yet there is a
cost--that the writing will seem immature and unseasoned. And why is
this so? It’s
because exclamation marks seem too much like middle school cheerleaders
eager to please. They jump and shout with great vigor and feeling, while
making the written words appear juvenile. They try so hard! They seem so
sincere! They want so much to please! But this is not the sort of mark
that makes writing appear more interesting, compelling, or clear. It
fails to convey emotion in the way the writer intends. It
is not easy to break the habit of ending sentences with this simple
mark. If you use exclamation points liberally, then you have some
serious editing ahead of you. A good rule of thumb is to use no more
than one mark per page. It should be used for genuine exclamations or
commands, such as “Halt!” or “What a show it was!” After
deleting each superfluous mark, ask yourself why you put it there in the
first place. If you were trying to convey added emotion, consider
whether the sentence with a period does so on its own. It may be that a
period is all you need. But if you find the sentence unsatisfying
without the exclamation point, then you know the language itself needs
work. Do what’s needed to convey the emotion by making the words
themselves compelling.
Writers
also use these marks with dialogue to convey volume and intensity, such
as: “I can’t believe you did that!” he shouted. An
occasional sentence like this is fine, but frequent use makes your
characters seem high strung and out of control. Again, consider how you
can convey the emotion with language rather than punctuation: His gaze cut like ice. “I can’t believe you did
that,” he said coldly. Once you restrict yourself to no more than one exclamation per page, you’ll see how insubstantial this little mark turns out to be. As your use of language propels your story or ideas forward, your punctuation can recede to where it belongs—inconspicuously doing its job in the background as your words carry your reader along. And when you no longer depend on the punctuation mark to carry your descriptions, your writing will mature as a result. By
Gayla Mills, ABP Editor © 2006 American Book Publishing™ *All other trademarks used by permission. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy and Trademark Use Policy.
|
