Passive voice often sneaks into our writing without us noticing. It can turn a lively story into a boring one. While passive voice can be useful sometimes—like when we want to highlight the action instead of who is doing it—it usually makes writing less clear and less interesting.
Clarity: Passive voice can make it hard to know who is doing what. For example, instead of saying "The ball was thrown by John," you could say "John threw the ball." This way, it’s clear who is taking action.
Conciseness: Passive sentences often use more words, which can make them complicated. Instead of saying "The ceremony was attended by a large crowd," you can simply say "A large crowd attended the ceremony."
Engagement: Active voice makes writing more lively and direct, which keeps readers interested. For example, "The novel was written by the author" feels dull compared to "The author wrote the novel." The second option feels much more exciting.
Voice: In creative writing, how you sound is important. Using passive voice can create distance between you and your reader. Active voice helps make a closer connection, allowing readers to feel more involved in the story.
Tension and Emotion: Active voice often shows urgency and emotion better. For example, "The dog chased the cat" feels exciting, while "The cat was chased by the dog" sounds more distant.
Look for forms of the verb "to be" (like is, are, was, were) followed by a past action word. This often means it’s passive.
Notice if the subject of the sentence is receiving the action instead of doing it. Ask yourself: Who is doing what? If it’s not clear, you might be using passive voice.
Read your writing out loud. Passive sentences can sound awkward, which means they need changes.
Use editing tools or grammar checkers to help spot passive voice. These tools can show you where to improve.
Find the Subject: Figure out who or what is doing the action. This is usually the subject of your sentence.
Change the Structure: Move the subject in front of the verb. For example, change "The song was sung by the choir" to "The choir sang the song."
Cut Extra Words: Passive voice often uses too many words. Shorten sentences to make them clearer. For example, "The decision was made by the committee" can be "The committee made the decision."
Keep Tenses the Same: Make sure the new sentence is in the same tense as the old one. If your passive sentence is in past tense, your active one should be too.
Practice: Try changing some passive sentences into active ones. This will help you improve your editing skills and your writing style overall.
When the action is more important than the person doing it. For instance, in a science report, saying "The experiment was conducted" is often more important than naming the researcher.
When you don’t know who did the action: If it’s not clear or relevant, like in "The painting was stolen," passive voice works fine.
If you want to sound more formal or objective: In some official documents, like legal papers, passive voice can create a sense of neutrality.
While passive voice has its uses, active voice is usually better for creative writing. A good story needs to be clear, engaging, and emotionally powerful, which active voice helps achieve. By practicing finding and changing passive voice into active voice, you can improve your writing and connect better with your readers. Always aim for clarity and energy—keep the subject lively in your sentences. Use active voice to bring your writing to life!
Passive voice often sneaks into our writing without us noticing. It can turn a lively story into a boring one. While passive voice can be useful sometimes—like when we want to highlight the action instead of who is doing it—it usually makes writing less clear and less interesting.
Clarity: Passive voice can make it hard to know who is doing what. For example, instead of saying "The ball was thrown by John," you could say "John threw the ball." This way, it’s clear who is taking action.
Conciseness: Passive sentences often use more words, which can make them complicated. Instead of saying "The ceremony was attended by a large crowd," you can simply say "A large crowd attended the ceremony."
Engagement: Active voice makes writing more lively and direct, which keeps readers interested. For example, "The novel was written by the author" feels dull compared to "The author wrote the novel." The second option feels much more exciting.
Voice: In creative writing, how you sound is important. Using passive voice can create distance between you and your reader. Active voice helps make a closer connection, allowing readers to feel more involved in the story.
Tension and Emotion: Active voice often shows urgency and emotion better. For example, "The dog chased the cat" feels exciting, while "The cat was chased by the dog" sounds more distant.
Look for forms of the verb "to be" (like is, are, was, were) followed by a past action word. This often means it’s passive.
Notice if the subject of the sentence is receiving the action instead of doing it. Ask yourself: Who is doing what? If it’s not clear, you might be using passive voice.
Read your writing out loud. Passive sentences can sound awkward, which means they need changes.
Use editing tools or grammar checkers to help spot passive voice. These tools can show you where to improve.
Find the Subject: Figure out who or what is doing the action. This is usually the subject of your sentence.
Change the Structure: Move the subject in front of the verb. For example, change "The song was sung by the choir" to "The choir sang the song."
Cut Extra Words: Passive voice often uses too many words. Shorten sentences to make them clearer. For example, "The decision was made by the committee" can be "The committee made the decision."
Keep Tenses the Same: Make sure the new sentence is in the same tense as the old one. If your passive sentence is in past tense, your active one should be too.
Practice: Try changing some passive sentences into active ones. This will help you improve your editing skills and your writing style overall.
When the action is more important than the person doing it. For instance, in a science report, saying "The experiment was conducted" is often more important than naming the researcher.
When you don’t know who did the action: If it’s not clear or relevant, like in "The painting was stolen," passive voice works fine.
If you want to sound more formal or objective: In some official documents, like legal papers, passive voice can create a sense of neutrality.
While passive voice has its uses, active voice is usually better for creative writing. A good story needs to be clear, engaging, and emotionally powerful, which active voice helps achieve. By practicing finding and changing passive voice into active voice, you can improve your writing and connect better with your readers. Always aim for clarity and energy—keep the subject lively in your sentences. Use active voice to bring your writing to life!