How do you write and collaborate in active voice?

Thank you! You provide a great explanation of active voice; it's an important writing skill. In my experience as a freelance writer and editor, I have found the skill of writing in "active voice" is one concept that improves a person's writing. I offer this as coaching advice to my clients who have a desire to improve their writing. Active voice makes sentences stronger and clearer (as you said), while cutting the word count. It's a skill I apply when content editing, but like all aspects of editing, I must focus on that specifically as I go through line editing the copy, then repeat my read-through editing for other priorities: developmental, audience, structure, grammar, etc.

To practise this, go back to the last feature or article you read. (Not this one!) Identify the subject + verb of a few sentences. By the way, in imperative sentences (like the ones above - 'go back to... ' & 'identify...'), don't write the subject. Even though the subject is 'you', never write it. And yes, those two sentences are also imperatives ;)

I place the subject first, followed by the action. This creates a direct, engaging narrative. Collaboration in active voice requires clear communication and a shared understanding of goals. I use tools such as Google Docs and Microsoft Teams, enabling real-time editing and feedback. Implementing a consistent review process helps ensure everyone's input is valued and incorporated.

When we write, it can help to think how we normally talk, because that is most often in active voice. "My neighbor finally mowed his lawn!" vs. "The lawn was finally mowed by my neighbor."

Be careful with phrases that include "by" as well. This word is used as an adverb and a preposition and can easily sneak into active voice writing. View passive constructions as an opportunity--a space to create a more active sentence.

Again, read over a magazine feature or online article, and notice if the writer has used the passive. Although it's often said that we should avoid the passive, that depends on the context of your writing. (As an example, the first phrase in the previous sentence uses the passive). That's because sometimes, you want to avoid mentioning the subject of the action. That can be when you're writing for a reader who's the object of an action. For example, 'You've been lied to.' That puts the reader (you) at the beginning of the sentence. Imagine the reader doesn't care WHO did the lying - only that they were lied to. So in general, avoid the passive. But also notice when the passive might be necessary.

Be on the lookout for verbs that create distance between the doer and the action. "Hippo Shipping helps deliver your packages faster," isn't as strong as "Hippo Shipping delivers your packages faster." Verbs like "helps," "supports," "tries," "wants," or "lets" are sometimes unnecessary buffer between the thing and what that thing does.

All excellent advice. I might add, reading copy out loud is a great final proofing tool. And collaborating with others expands our vision and helps us gain skills, no matter how long we've been writing. I've co-written books and worked with teams on book compilations, and this helps to keep our sensitive writing ego in check. We must "toughen our hide" and be willing to accept critique from those we respect. Friends perspectives are sometimes valuable and sometimes not. A close friend may come off as uninterested and that may be a big surprise; it hurts our feelings. Accept that reality is not unusual among writers. Truth is, we know that we have grown as a writer when we are able to move on from our hurt feelings. Enjoy!

I found style guides and/or brand voice guides very helpful in creating consistency among writers and editors. Share the guide(s) with everyone who will touch the content, including designers. A lot of the back and forth will be eliminated when there is an actual document that shows you what is allowed and not allowed for that brand's copy. The guides will help the writer and editor to determine, rather quickly, how this brand wants the active voice to be written in their brand voice.

Here are three additional tips to help: 1) After you've written the material, step away from it for a bit (hours, days). Re-read it when you return and you'll see whether or not it is as compelling, strong and active as you thought when you first wrote it. If it is, great. If not, revise it and then do the same thing again. 2) Remove extraneous words and phrases that weaken the content. Words such as "that" are often not needed (ex: "that will be done" instead of "will be done"). 3) Have someone you trust, who is also a good writer, read it and provide constructive criticism. Having a third-party perspective helps.

When writing for a broad audience, avoid idioms and slang that: - Wouldn't make sense if translated into another language; - Would be difficult to understand if English (in this case) isn't a person's native language; - Are colloquialisms that only a specific subset of a population would understand. There are many other creative, inclusive ways to make writing interesting without such phrases.

The default GPT models write like uninspired high school textbooks if you only ask them to write a linked in post about active voice. You have to work with them and train them to get copy to the level you want. Working with AI is just like the process of writing. Revision and iteration is needed to get something good. There’s no way this is interesting enough for a professional community. The novelty of the process isn’t going to make up for the content. An article here about active voice should be inspiring. Exciting. Aspirational. Educational. Not read like Mr. Jones from 3rd period lit. Happy to help your team redo this so we can create something more meaningful together.

I emphasize writing in the active voice as it brings clarity and conciseness to the message. The active voice makes the sentences more direct and engaging, which helps in keeping the readers' attention. When collaborating, I encourage my team to follow the same style, creating a strong, unified voice across all content. We often conduct peer reviews and edits to ensure active voice usage and maintain a dynamic, engaging tone in our collective output.