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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/31300
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

In writing, particularly writing dialogue or speech-like prose, it is custom to use the punctuation to indicate the tone of the speech.

As such, one often uses an exclamation point on a standard statement which would make it a statement made with an exclamatory tone, i.e. an exclamatory statement.

Now, what about an exclamation punctuated with a full stop? Instead of shouting

> "Boy, was I wrong!", hands in the air

you say

> "Boy, was I wrong.", even-toned

or with an ellipsis

> "Boy, was I wrong...", lowering your tone and shaking your head.

I have an inkling that all those are grammatically correct, but let's say I am writing an article, trying to engage my reader as if I would be talking directly to him. Are there cases where it would be frowned upon using something like that? Should I prefer using an exclamation point in every case, or try to reformulate the statement?

Clarification:  
There seems to have some confusion on my intent. I _don't_ want to sound exclamative, but the way I structure my sentence, with an interrogative word at the beginning and the sentence not being a question would point to the sentence being an exclamation, which by definition comes with an exclamation point. That's what prompted me to ask in the first place.

Original score: 3