When do you use the exclamation mark?

I get confused on when to use the exclamation mark "!". Are there concise rules on when to use the exclamation mark "!"?

Solution 1:

An exclamation mark indicates that something was exclaimed.

It should generally only be used in spoken dialog, when someone is angry, excited, or frustrated. It should almost never be used in technical writing, or in narrative text. For example,

Larry walked to the store! He was very excited! He shouted, "Hello."

is an inappropriate use of exclamation marks. However,

Larry walked to the store. He was very excited. He shouted, "Hello!"

would be more appropriate.

Solution 2:

The exclamation mark is used to indicate an increase in sound level, to be "heard" by the reader. It is also used to convey emotion.

The reader should hear a marked difference at the end of these sentences:

The usher gave us our programs and said, "This way."

Leading hikers through a thunderstorm, the guide shouted, "This way!"

The increase in sound level doesn't have to be as extreme as shouting. John Lawler provided the following quote in a comment:

And if it is really, after all, a banal sentence needing more zing, the exclamation point simply emphasizes its banality!

The exclamation mark tells us there's an intended crescendo at the end of that sentence, starting at about its.

As for emotion, let's take fluffy's example about Larry:

Larry walked to the store. He was very excited. He shouted, "Hello!"

Normally, the preceding sentences should not have exclamation points, but if Larry had been unable to walk for months or years, it would be appropriate, and accurate, to write

Larry walked to the store! He was very excited! He shouted, "Hello!"

Also, someone might grumble, "It's irritating." Another might grumble, "It's irritating!" The first case is milder annoyance. The latter expresses more emotion.

We shouldn't steer clear of exclamation marks. They help us convey just what we want to convey in dialogue and descriptive writing.

However, that's also why they should be used very rarely, if at all, in more formal writing (e.g. academic writing, developing a thesis, business communication, and the like), to keep the tone professional, neutral, or objective. This kind of writing isn't always devoid of emotion or passion, nor should it be, but emphasis and excitement should arise without manipulation from the author, from choice words and crescendos of logic and reasoning, not created arbitrarily with exclamation marks.