In Defense of Emoticons, Asterisks, and Exclamation Points!!!

Have you ever been in a conversation and found yourself blurting out what you think is a funny joke only to be met with a blank expression?

Imagine writing a comment using sardonic wit. The writer of the post can be left wondering what the hell you meant by that and may slap their laptop shut, storm out of their study, then sit back down and Unfollow you!

Insert smiley face 🙂 and voila! Sarcasm bursts through the words and the writer giggles along with the commenter.

When I first started blogging around two years ago, it took me a while to get the hang of commenting. At first, I went into hyperdrive and left lame, “Great post!” comments everywhere.

Then I slowed down and read other reader’s comments. Some chose eloquent words. Others related to the content of the post and either responded emotionally or revealed something about themselves.  A few were hysterically funny. Most used different ways to express their emotion.

I look forward to reading what you think of my words. Sometimes comments make me laugh. Others are so sweet, they are like precious gifts, so I copy them to a saved file. Once in a while, I scratch my head and wonder.

To help you through the emotional minefield of commenting, I came up with:

Susie’s Surefire Glossary to Conveying Emotion:

Emoticons – Many comments contain the smiley face. 🙂 It has always reminded me of Walmart, so it took a while for the association to fade. Now I LOVE the round yellow faces! They are like happy little bubbles of joy, unless they are unhappy faces. 😦

Asterisks – Many use them for sound effects. **clink**, **crash**, **gulp**, **giggle**. These fun additions add another dimension to the comment and tickle my funny bone.

Exclamation Points – Okay. I’ll admit it. I am an exclamation point junkie! When wanting to convey my big goofy grin, I use them like periods. Honest to God. I have to go through every happy comment and take out at least half of them before Replying. Sometimes my itchy finger presses Reply too soon.

When surprised or excited by good news, I will use two to four exclamation points. When something makes me jump out of my chair, I sit back down and then use eight, nine, or twenty of them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think they show my natural tightly wound and quick with a smile nature.

If I take them all out, it looks like I just lost my best friend or I am not sincere in my response after laughing so hard, my face hurts.

I’ve read more than a few posts written by bloggers who hate them. Sorry. My exclamation point addiction raises its pointed head in nearly every comment unless it is a very serious or sad topic.

Question Marks – Yep. I use them in plural too for emphasis such as, “Can you believe how many question marks I use????”

Acronyms – I have tried out LOL, ROFL, YKWIM, and LMAO, but these descriptive shortcuts just aren’t me. I prefer to write them out. I admit to loving YOLO which means You Only Live Once. They are great words for any Wild Rider to live by.

Awww! – This genuine gushing thank you often accompanies a **blush**.

Cursing – Some blurt f-bombs with no hesitation while others disguise foul language with @#$%. I wrote about the subject here and the comments were f#@%ing amazing! Sorry. I couldn’t help myself… 😉

Hahaha! – My boisterous guffaw can often be heard by my next-door neighbor.

…. – Dramatic or comic pause left at the end of a punchline meaning, “Do you get it? You get it, right?”

ANYTHING IN ALLCAPS  – The message is meant to be really loud or sarcastic.

There are a lot of examples in this Twitter exchange. Can you count them?

…random description…  – Three dots enclose an author’s thoughts or action such as the very common, “…spits coffee all over computer screen…” or the uncommon, “…runs outside to howl with coyotes…”

Muah!  – Air kiss.

(((hugs))) (((shivers))) – Self explanatory, but effective.

Now you can go forth and blurt comments with confidence knowing they will be received in the right light or the wrong light, but whatever light you intend. Even if you are not interested in using any of these techniques, at least now You Know What I Mean!!!! 😉

What’s your take on conveying emotion in comments?

Emoticons. Love ’em or hate ’em?

Related articles:

The List of Chat Acronyms and Text Message Shorthand 

This is so Hideous!

Do You Curse Brightly

I Will Follow You!