I was never a fan of text-speak, exlamation marks, or emojis. In fact, I didn’t like them one bit. After all, I shouldn’t need to add smiley faces after I’ve cracked a joke just to show people that it really IS a joke, should I? And unless I’m saying something like “Ouch!” there’s very little room for exclamations let alone the dreaded multiple exclamation marks.

As for text-speak abbreviations, I disliked them from the time I asked someone what “LOL” meant and got the “Laughs Out Loud” response.

“No need to be sarcastic,” I responded, “just tell me.” I’m still cringing.

Then I discovered real-time strategy (RTS) games with a social element, and suddenly, I’m an emoji spewing, text abbreviating, exclaiming demon!

Someone just suffered an in-game setback. Well, what could be better than the emoji that gushes tears like twin Niagras? Everybody’s messing about, and it’s funny, so here comes the laughing emoji with the ^^ eyes. And of course, from there it’s just a hop and a skip to ROFLing, LOLing or even LMAOing. As for exclamations, well, everything is exclamation-worthy, and one exclamation mark is seldom enough.

My Correspondence Suffers Most

My penchant for online games hasn’t really had much impact on how I write articles, but suddenly correspondence is peppered with :p, :), :D, and more. (>_<) . Help me! Worst of all are the multiple exclamation marks, my trademark on in-game chat. At first, it was a rebellion against my own dislike of exclamation marks. It was a bit like finding out I could start a sentence with “and” or “but” without being guilty of a grammatical faux pas.

I started small. Just one exclamation at a time. Then I worked my way up to series of three, even five exclamations!!!!! It’s addictive! Now, I struggle to get through a message without including at least one exclamtaion point somewhere. And, oh dear! “Because” has become “cuz” and “fun” has become “funnnnnnnn.”

So, nowadays, I write to a client, and then zoot back to erase most of the emojis, decide whether I really want to include any text-speak abbreviations, and rapidly check for “cuz” creeping in. It’s a bit of a minefield.

My Writing Helps My Game

While my game has inclined me towards many textual vices I would otherwise have shunned, I will say that my writing has helped my game. After all, a user name that makes people smile and a degree of charm when dealing with opponents can go a long way. I have persuaded my “frenemies” to relinquish strategic advantages, and I have turned opponents into buddies. It’s all part of the fun, or, to put it in context, “Funnnnnnnn!!!!!”

And My Game Has Helped My Writing – On Occasion

Theres a fair amount of work related to games and apps out there. A client with a new concept recently remarked that he was fortunate to have found a writer who understands just how addictive online games can be. At least I didn’t grace his business plan with multiple emojis – that would have been pushing it! 0_o