passive voice

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Home : 2005 : February : 7

passive voice
By Mary

One way that is fun and challenging to work on changing passive voice is to have them take a page or a section of their writing, and re-write it with no use at all of the verb "to be." That means they can't use be, been,
am, is, are, were, will, was--did I forget any? It's a lot harder than it sounds, and really forces them into active voice.
And truthfully--I've said it on this board before--we teach far too much fiction and not enough of what they'll really need. Are they going to write prize-winning fiction for a living, or are they more apt to work at a more mundane job, like the rest of us? I

would (personally) focus a lot more on the type of writing they will do as an adult. I like the letter to the editor thing, but what about cover letters for a job? What about a letter (or email) expressing interest in a job or promotion? How about college admissions letters? Research papers which cogently argue a position would also help them, I bet. I mean, I adore fiction, and I write fiction, but I'm not sure it's the most important thing we can teach them.