Social e-mail, text messages, and ads often use exclamation points to show warmth and enthusiasm. But this convention does not carry over to more formal writing. In most academic writing, exclamation points should be used rarely.

But then a salesperson will be rude, or someone we know will share an opinion that I find offensive, and I’ll find myself speaking up before I even realize what I’m doing!

The woman on the third floor of the burning building leaned out a window and screamed, “Help!”