Dear Geist,

Where do you stand on exclamation marks? I love them! They’re part of my writing style because they have a built-in energy that you can’t get from any other punctuation. Why are people so down on this powerfully positive symbol?!

—Punc Punk, Calgary AB

Dear Punc,

The high energy of the exclamation mark is its strength, and is also the reason some writers, editors and grammarians advise us to use it sparingly. When it’s used often, it tends to lose its oomph and even to become annoying. As people who study the effects of written language put it in the early days of email etiquette, flourishes such as abundant exclamation marks and long passages all in capital letters make readers feel shouted at, and bring on fatigue and irritation, the opposite of the desired effect. Like any strong substance, this one is best deployed in small doses.

—The Editors