Written by Ellen E. Withers. Previously published in Writers Monthly PDF, September 2021, edited and published by Del Garrett. To sign up for a $12 annual subscription, send an email to del.garrett.s0ke@gmail.com.
I’ve been a judge of many contests and the best advice I can give any writer is: Resist exclamation points! I mean it! I’m not kidding! There is a reason why the journalistic world refers to them as “a screamer” or “a gasper.” Even with brackets (!) it still shouts off the page and jumps up and down. Readers see these heavy-handed bits of punctuation and are pulled out of the magic of the story, away from the willing suspension of disbelief they’d previously allowed.
As much as I recommend you banish most exclamation points, you are still allowed one or two in your story of 5000 words or less for drama or to exclaim. For example: “Phew! What in heaven’s name is that smell?” or “Carla! A snake!”
Punctuation has been defined as the basting that holds the fabric of language in shape. It’s also been described as the traffic signals of language: they tell us to slow down, notice this, take a detour, and stop. If punctuation is the traffic signal of language, then the exclamation point is the danger sign at the end of the road noting a sheer cliff awaits those who ignore the sign.
Let your dialogue and gestures convey the emotion. An exclamation point is an easy way to express emotion. Good writers craft better ways to guide their readers understanding of the emotion in their story.
The comma and semicolon can be great in most writing as long as they aren’t overused. The overuse of any type of punctuation can make the reader annoyed. The comma slows the reader a little and the semicolon somewhat more. Use a semicolon when a comma is too weak and a period is too strong or makes the sentences choppy. They can affect the cadence of your writing, which is why their use is important to understand. The semicolon does its best work when it unites closely related statements or lists without the need for a conjunction such as “but” or “and.” The difference might be subtle, but can be quite artful when properly utilized. Semicolons are also perfect for use before transition words like nevertheless or therefore. An example is: “Marshall was perfect; otherwise, Mallory wouldn’t have married him.”
Quotation marks should help indicate where dialogue starts and stops as well as who is speaking. In the contest world, follow the basics with quotation marks and leave the dumping of quote marks to those who are famous. When you’re famous, then you can dump them as well. Pick a style, I usually use Associated Press Style (A.P. Style) or Chicago Manual of Style, and then be consistent with your use of that style throughout your piece.
As a contest judge, it drives me crazy to see punctuation outside of the quotation marks. “Really”? “Yes, indeed, my friend”. (It should be, “Really?” and “Yes, indeed, my friend.”) Somewhere on earth this might be acceptable in a style guide, but I suggest you refrain from using an obscure style guide with contest entries. When you become famous, you can be as creative as your editor and publisher allow.
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