For me this little segment isn't just about exclamation points, it's personal. The overuse of the exclamation point is a plague on our nation. The next time you stop in for your morning coffee pay attention to the notes behind the counter. These notes are posted on every important spot in every workplace and here are some examples:
Don't overfill grinder!!!!!!!!!!
Replace when empty!!!!!!!!!!
Be careful when operating!!!!!!!!!!
Caution hot!!!!
It seems that whenever someone wants to get their point across they use a whole bunch of exclamation points. What I wonder when I read this is; Who is this person and why are they yelling at me? Now as for your fiction. Elmore Leonard states in his Ten Rules of Writing that; "You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose." You don't need to throw these little buggers in to make a point. A good writer's reader knows when his characters are shouting despite how the dialog is punctuated. And as for the memos and passive aggressive notes at work? Do society a favor and throw out everything you see with more than one exclamation point.
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