Writeropolis Media

Understanding the difference between active vs. passive voice is crucial for effective writing. It’s something that I’ve struggled with personally, and I’m not afraid to admit that. I’m constantly pushing myself to recognize it when I see it so that I can be the best editor that I can be.

With practice and awareness, writers can create a sense of action and directness by using active voice, while passive voice shifts the focus or evokes a more formal tone.

Knowing when to use active or passive voice can significantly enhance a piece’s clarity. While both have benefits and usage, using them strategically is vital to convey a message clearly and engage the reader. The key is always to be intentional and purposeful and consider the ideal audience for the piece.

Here’s how I would define active and passive voice, and then I’ll discuss each form’s distinct features.

What is active voice?

The act of telling what a person or thing does is active voice when you’re writing it all out. The subject acts and typically comes before the action.

What is passive voice?

The process of telling what’s done to someone or something is what the passive voice does on the page. The subject acts and typically comes after the action.

5 examples of active vs. passive voice

I bet you’re wondering where I’ve been for most of 2023. Due to personal issues, I’ve had limited bandwidth to handle much beyond my responsibilities. However, I always see the new year as the chance to reset everything.

So, I’m starting the new year fresh. Starting with our name.

We’re no longer Writeropolis Industries but Writeropolis Media. I thought that was a better, all-encompassing name. I took on Industries as a nod to Stark Industries from the Marvel comics and movies, but it does have a specific connotation that doesn’t fit what I’m trying to do here.

I’m also changing my availability for consultations and appointments in general for 2024. I won’t be available on holidays, Saturdays, or Sundays. My availability is Monday through Friday from 3 PM to 9 PM Pacific time. My booking calendar reflects this change.

I also updated the hours for my amenities. My office hours are Mondays at 6 PM (barring any major holidays), the Silent Book Club on Tuesdays at 6 PM, and the writing sprints on Wednesdays at 6 PM.

I’ve reviewed the website and updated everything, and I hope I caught everything! If not, I’ll tackle them as I find them.

I hope to get back to my regular publishing scheduling within the first or second week of the New Year, but please grant me some grace while I get back into that groove.

Despite the mixed intent with the term “letters to the editor,” an editorial letter means something utterly different to a creative writer.

Professional copy editors – like me – should be sending you an editorial letter when completing an editing project.

It’s like receiving a critique from a group workshop in an MFA program.

What are editorial letters?

An editorial letter evaluates a manuscript highlighting the editor’s questions and concerns regarding the project’s content. The letter lets your editor flesh out any creative concerns or issues they saw as they consumed your work during editing.

The tone is like a snail mail letter to a friend: casual, conversational, and to the point.

The document should exist separately from any marked-up manuscript you received from the editor. Sometimes, editors will attach the letter to your manuscript at the beginning or the end so you can read them together.

Some creative issues they may pinpoint might be tone, pacing, characterization, show, don’t tell, glaring plot holes, over-reliance on a particular phrase or word, etc.

Expectations from an editorial letter

When I send my authors the editorial letter, I always include knee-jerk reactions to the project. Sometimes it’s as simple as the overall vibe or as in-depth as your dependence on passive voice.

Some editors might not include their knee-jerk reactions, but I always look at your work as a reader first. If I don’t understand something as the reader, I’m confident that other beta readers will also notice it and bring it to your attention.

The letter should provide constructive criticism but also not be prescriptive at all. You should be wary of anyone who tries to impose such control on your work in that way. You should expect suggestions but not outright demands of “you should do this instead of that.”

Everything you do is a choice of craft; you alone should decide what stays on the page and what goes.

What happens upon receiving an editorial letter?

Whatever you want. Keep it, toss it, read it, don’t read it.

That sounds counterproductive to what you probably thought you would read, but it’s true. I’ve received editorial letters and felt they missed the point. I don’t see that as a bad thing, of course.

The letter is an excellent starting point for revisions. I often use the editorial letters I receive to fine-tune my manuscript for the next round. I might build on their suggestions by drawing out specific images, deleting or adding dialogue, or toning down metaphors.

Maybe your editorial letter is pointing out the lack of an active voice. Comb through the manuscript line-by-line and fix those instances of passive voice unless it was a craft choice.

The thing is, claiming something as a craft choice isn’t the crutch you think it is!

Reader perception is essential when writing something for an audience. That’s why you do what you do: you want people to read your work.

Indeed, sometimes the person reading your manuscript isn’t your target audience, and that’s okay! But you should trust that they’re seeing something there.

There’s value in their opinions. They wouldn’t have brought it to your attention if they didn’t think it was relevant to improving your manuscript.

I offer this list as writing prompts to help you tackle your current round of writer’s block.

The name is based on the Twilight Zone episode, Five Characters in Search of an Exit, and centers on personal observations I made of these folks while people-watching in the park one day.

The assumptions of gender, race, or creed are offered in peace, and substitutions are welcomed and encouraged.

Instructions

1. Take a character from a bullet point, set a five-minute timer, and WRITE.
2. Let these characters be the stars of a short story, a poem, or a character profile. Feel free to scoop a handful and integrate them into a current work-in-progress. Make them your own.
3. Allow your mind and pen or typing to wander. See what comes out of it. No judgment. No editing. Encourage your creativity to flow.
4. I’d love to see what came out of this exercise for you, so shoot me a message. I love connecting with people who find joy in writing as much as I do.

Good luck!

Writing prompts

1. He was a male adolescent. His greasy, dirty blonde hair was tucked underneath a black knit cap with an indistinguishable logo across the front. The skateboard was tucked between his scrawny chicken legs. He wore a war-torn drawstring bag with the Adidas logo across his sweaty, muscled back. Dirt was under his fingernails, and he looked like a nervous cat.

2. He was an older male with black and white hair, possibly Jewish. He wore an ill-fitting gray suit that may have fit his thin frame properly at one time. His Oxfords were polished, but no elbow grease could remove the scuff marks. He gave off the distinct aroma of peppermint and pipe tobacco. There was a plain plastic bag in his hands. His gait was determined, though slower than the crowd.

3. She had long black hair and pale white skin. Black Ray-Bans disguised her eyes. Her face had no wrinkles, and her nails were impeccable, though unpainted. She wore a zipped-up yellow hoodie and deconstructed denim jeans. Her purple Jansport backpack was decorated with buttons and safety pins. She smelled of cigarette smoke and Chanel No 5.

4. His slicked-back black hair was shiny in direct sunlight. He was Indian, and thin wire glasses framed his bushy eyebrows. He wore a gray fleece pullover sweater, and a black backpack bounced against his broad back. His jeans looked lived in and could probably tell a thousand stories. His tennis shoes looked like they had been put through the wringer. He had a friendly smile.

5. The French woman was joined by her boyfriend. They held hands and discussed their dinner plans for that night in their native language. They looked strikingly similar: light brown hair, bold blue eyes, and ready smiles. Her hair and makeup were perfect. The red scarf around her throat accented the black and white blouse and skirt. Her heels were brand-new. His scruffy beard aged him but in a good way. His crisp denim shirt covered his plain white T-shirt. His khaki pants were pressed perfectly.

6. She was Asian, probably Filipino, because of her dark skin. She was short, barely hitting 5 feet. Her dyed brown hair was tied back in a ponytail, accentuating the severity of her features, disguised by the generous amount of makeup she wore. She spoke quietly but furiously on her iPhone, waving her hands at indiscriminate moments during her conversation. Her Michael Kors bag – this season – bounced jauntily on her arm as she walked. Her navy blue pumps made the floor vibrate.

7. She was a young child in elementary school, clutching her mother’s hand. They were opposites in terms of looks. The child wore her curly brown hair in pigtails and had large, expressive green eyes set against light skin; her mother had her straight blonde hair pulled back in a bun with brown eyes and dark skin, probably suntanned. But their facial expressions were mirror images of each other. They were kind. The girl whispered something to her mother, who chuckled and whispered something back, making her laugh.

8. He was not alone, and he made sure everyone knew. His generic body spray was mixed with the rest of his friends indiscriminately. His blonde hair was short and spiky. His brown eyes glared back at anyone who dared look at his gang. They were dressed similarly: basketball jerseys and long gym shorts. He drank Coke from a plastic bottle. When it was empty, he looked around for the nearest trash can 10 feet away. Faking a spin move, he hooked the bottle toward the can and missed spectacularly. His friends quickly hassled him for his poor b-boy skills. He abandoned the bottle on the floor, disavowing its existence.

9. She wore a crown of blue plastic flowers in her hair. She was natural ginger, which she wore long and straight. She had a long-sleeved blue blouse, black pants, and open-toed sandals. Her medium-height Rubenesque figure was loaded with her plain brown hobo bag and 4 reusable bags of indiscriminate shapes and sizes. She walked purposefully and made no eye contact with anyone. The smell of strawberries lingered in her wake.

10. His hands were buried in the front pockets of his college sweater. The white logo of his alma mater was emblazoned across the front and contrasted nicely with the cotton material dyed blue. Glasses framed his inquisitive blue eyes, highlighting his jawline and cleft chin. He was skinny and pale. He looked younger than he should be, barely beginning college, not having graduated. He looked squirrel-ly and nervous, probably his first day in the real world. His shoes were brand-new Air Jordans, most likely a gift from his mother, who stood beside him with a tight-lipped look on her wrinkled face.