Writing active voice

With the aid of William Strunk and E.B. White in The Elements of Style and that of William Zinsser in On Writing Well, Rudolph Flesch in The ABC of Style, and D.L. Carson, whose comments appear in this book, I have tried to follow some principles of technical communication lately ignored in scientific texts use the first person, put yourself in the reader s place, and, the best for last, use the active voice and a personal subject. 

Strive to write in the active, rather than passive, voice. Not only is it more clear and direct, but the active voice conveys your meaning more easily. If you use the passive voice, your sentences may become too wordy, and lack focus. The last thing you want is long sentences that are confusing to the reader. 

Two writing conventions apply to the Methods section as a whole the use of tense (past or present) and voice (passive or active). Past tense and passive voice predominate in the Methods section however, in some cases, present tense and/ or active voice are also used. Like other writing conventions, the proper use of tense and voice reveals authors familiarity with the expectations of the held, their objectivity, and more expert-like writing abilities. 

The first sentence sounds interesting. It s clear, easy to follow, and briefer than the second sentence. The second sentence is in the passive voice. In general, you should try to write in the active voice. 

Active voice—by avoiding personal pronouns, scientists often depend excessively on the passive voice, which can weaken the writing style. When possible, replace passive voice with active voice. 

We have attempted to use shorter sentences, a more active voice, and a more conversational writing style in each chapter. 

Write in the present tense, using the active voice and beginning with an imperative. ("You" is the imphed actor.)... 

Most authors of style books recommend that writing be in the active voice. However, a mix of active and passive may be most appropriate. The passive is slightly more professionaL whereas the active voice is more energetic, as can be seen from the following examples ... 

SOPs should be written in a concise, step-by-step, and easy-to-read format. The information presented should be unambiguous and not overly complicated. The active voice and present verb tense should be used. The term you should not be used, but implied. The document should not be wordy, redundant, or overly lengthy. Keep it simple and short. Information should be conveyed clearly and explicitly to remove any doubt as to what is required. Also, use a flowchart to illustrate the process being described. Here are some guidelines for writing an SOP ... 

Active writing, or writing in the active voice, is direct, rigorous, definite, and shorter. Active voice typically uses a simple subject-verb-object structure. In contrast, passive writing, or writing in the passive voice, is indirect, tame, and sometimes indefinite. 

As noted, strive for brevity, that is, documents that are no longer than they have to be. Engineers and other technical professionals value efiBcient facilities and equipment. Let s also strive for efficient writing. While active voice writing reduces document length, other means are available to tighten up your writing. 

RULE 29 Strive to Write In the Active, Rather Than the Passive, Voice... 

Wordiness and ambiguity often prevent ideas from coming across clearly. Edit your sentences to eliminate clutter and unnecessary repetition. Revise sentences that use overly informal or overused words, and exchange the passive voice for the active. Clarify ambiguous words and unclear pronoun references. Finally, improve your writing by using precise modifiers and adding variety to your sentence structure. 

In discussing physical chemistry curriculum revision we voiced many of the same concerns that are detailed in the New Traditions Physical Chemistry Curriculum Planning Session Report (7). Our new curriculum attempts to address specifically the concerns regarding math preparation, course content, active learning, writing skills, and appropriate utilization of the laboratory course to enhance learning. 

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