Recently, I was intrigued by a newspaper article titled, U.K.’s New Grammar Rules Say What!?!! Banning exclamation points could make them ‘cool.’

In my writing classes, I have long taught students to avoid this punctuation mark because it is ‘telling’ not ‘showing.’ Exclamation points tell the reader, My last sentence was exciting! Amazing! Incredible! Awesome! The writer should show this with her words as well as engage the reader by letting him decide for himself how amazing the statement was. 

For my serious writing, I never use exclamation points. Well, I’ve relaxed my rules lately, so I might insert one or two per book.

Emails are another matter. When writing them, I don’t take the time to shape my words to be sure the meaning I intend is coming across. Exclamation points are a convenient shorthand. In emails, I feel anything goes punctuation-wise. I don’t tend toward strings of exclamation points or question marks, but if you want to portray yourself as an enthusiastic, casual person, why not?

Likewise, in emails I make liberal use of emoticons for fun and to avoid offending a recipient with any thoughtless words. I often use parentheses and dashes. In books, when I find more than one phrase in brackets per page or two, it makes me feel the writer is too lazy to construct sentences that flow into the next.  Occasional parentheses can be funny; too many are jarring (they jerk the reader out of the narrative).

In the newspaper piece, gripes about the British school system’s new ban on exclamation points were largely against making this a rule, as opposed to teaching students the negatives about exclamation points and to think carefully before using one.

I think the ban will tend to lead to this kind of teaching rather than result in the elimination of the dreaded punctuation mark, or make it cool for rebellious youths.

One educator objected to the ban on the grounds that it will confuse students, when the exclamation point is used so frequently by world leaders. He notes that Donald Trump’s website is littered with them (“I won’t let them take away our guns!!”)

Trump likes them? That’s the best reason I’ve heard to ban the exclamation point!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“How inappropriate, scary, or uncomfortable are you willing to get in your writing?” Emcee Elaine Morin asked us five readers during the Question and Answer feature of Writing in the Works. “Is there some place you won’t go? Do people have to die before you’ll write about certain things?”

At the time, I answered briefly. “If I get an idea or an urge to write something, I’ll go for it and later decide if I publish this. So, no one needs to die for me to write it, but to publish? Probably.”

For my novel-in-progress To Catch a Fox, as I was thinking about how to raise the stakes for my protagonist, it hit me: she could attempt to murder her child.

I wrote the scene for a new novel opening. It made me uncomfortable and also wasn’t the easiest style of writing for me, but I felt it would be cowardly not to leave it , at least for now.

As the novel progressed, I could see that this horrible act was essential for my protagonist’s motivation later in the story. To remove it would make the plot less believable — and less dramatic.

Still, I wavered. I asked a couple of senior writers, “Can I make my protagonist a mother like this if I want her to be sympathetic?”

“Sure,” they said.

That’s the challenge of writing.

Looks like I’m stuck with it — for now, anyway.

“Since Writing in the Works is all about sharing works in progress, at which point do you share or discuss your project with someone?” Elaine Morin, the emcee, asked the five readers that night – Rob Bose, Joan Crate, Sarah Johnson, Taylor Lambert and me.

“Around the second draft,” I said. “I believe the first draft is for you, to explore. By the second draft, you’re starting to work on getting your story and characters across to others.”

Sarah Johnson said, ” I don’t discuss my story until I’ve written a draft. I find if I do that I’ve talked it enough that don’t feel like writing it anymore.”

“I discuss it,” said Rob Bose. “If people are interested, I figure the story is worth writing.”

“Well,” Joan Crate said. “I gave you my first draft in my reading tonight.”

Every writer has a different process. While it’s interesting to hear how others handle this job, in the end, it’s about what works for you.

I’m looking forward to the launch of my friend Pamela McDowell’s new children’s book Salamander Rescue, the sequel to Ospreys in Danger. Salamander Rescue will be launched on May 10 at Owl’s Nest Books and everyone is welcome. If you would like to win a copy of Salamander Rescue, enter Pam’s Goodreads Giveaway May 1 – 15. She has ten copies to give away to lucky readers.

To celebrate the release of Salamander Rescue Pam  is getting a salamander tattoo to go with her osprey one. Now that is writing bravery!