"Show! Don't Tell."
It's one of the most oft-uttered phrases in writing history. I've heard it. I've said it. But what does it actually mean to "show," and how do we know when we're "telling"?
Secret #1 lies in the verbs we use.
"Showing sentences" use the active voice.
"Telling sentences" use the passive voice.
A passive construction often contains the following formula: "to be" + past participle (or the "ed" verb).
For example:
The movie has been watched by the friends over a dozen times. (passive construction)
The painting was completed by Charlotte. (passive construction)
How could we fix these to make them active? By re-arranging the words so that the person or thing is doing the action (not having the action done to them).
The friends watched the movie more than a dozen times. (active construction)
Charlotte completed the painting. (active construction)
How do we locate passive sentences in our writing?
First, we should isolate the sentence. Then, we need to determine what's happening in the sentence and decide if an action is taking place. If so, we need to decide if the action is being done to the person or thing, or if the person/thing is doing the action. If the sentence is passive, then it's just a matter of rearranging the subject and verb.
Is every "be" or "have" sentence passive? No. It depends on how the verb is being used in the sentence, so don't think every am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been, have, has, had needs to be cut from a manuscript. Some of them are important and even necessary.
Just pay careful attention to the action taking place in your sentence. The more "active" the sentence is, the closer you are to "showing."
Be Brilliant!
~Katie~
