Over punctuating rather than using words

Leaning too heavily on punctuation is lazy af

Sometimes, it’s tempting to demand your reader emphasize your sentence in just the right way by italicizing that one part, or to let them know you mean business by using an exclamation mark! Or, hopefully less frequently, by using the occasional ALL CAPS (shudder) to make your point.

But, consider this: use caps, italics, bold type, exclamation points and that ilk of punctuation only after you’ve exhausted other avenues of making that point through language alone. Let the power of individual words, ideas and knowledge serve as strength and emphasis in your writing first and foremost before running to the safety of these routes of emphasis. Give words truth and power and let them stand on their own and they’ll rarely need the distraction of additional emphasis.

(Plus not much of it will fly when pitching many editors, so there’s that, too.)