1. © 2016. Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Chapter 8 –
Voice
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

2. © 2016. Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Opening Activity
Voice is an important part of adopting a particular writerly personality. Think about and discuss the following:
What types of voices do you use in your everyday life?
How do you express those voices?
What choices do you make when you purposely adopt a certain voice in a particular situation?
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3. © 2016. Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Learning Outcomes
By the time you finish reading and studying this chapter, you should be able to:
LO1 Read for voice.
LO2 Write with voice.
LO3 Read for word choice and sentences.
LO4 Write with specific words and strong sentences.
lightpoet, 2014/Used under license from Shutterstock.com
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

4. Reading for Voice
Authors choose to adopt particular voices in their writing based on purpose and audience.
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5. Writing with Voice
Personal voice sounds somewhat like a conversation and is often used in narrative writing. Common features of personal voice are:
First-person point of view
Personal thoughts and feelings
Easy-reading sentences
Familiar words
Pressmaster, 2014/Used under license from Shutterstock.com
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6. Writing with Voice
Academic voice sounds serious and somewhat formal. Common features of academic voice are:
Third-person point of view
Fact and details rather than personal thoughts or feelings
Longer, more complex sentences
Special words and phrases to show subject knowledge
Credit given to sources of information
No informal contractions, slangs and familiar sayings
Romas_Photo, 2014 /Used under license from Shutterstock.com
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7. Writing with Voice To help yourself develop a writing voice:
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8. Reading for Word Choice and Sentences
Thinking about how a writer expresses his or her ideas through word choice and sentences enhances your understanding of, and appreciation for, a reading.
Texts
Word Choice
Sentences
Academic
Content-specific words
Long and complex; sometimes contains many ideas
Personal
Recognizable words
Simpler, easier to follow, moving along more quickly; more variety in length and structure
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9. Writing with Specific Words and Strong Sentences
Keep the following in mind when writing:
When Choosing Words
Specific words or nouns are usually better than general ones.
Fresh, descriptive words trump over-used ones.
To Communicate Clearly
Avoid using adjectives that are too general.
Do not connect too many adjectives.
Do not use the same words again and again.
Do not use too many “be” verbs. Use action verbs instead.
Use words correctly.
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10. Writing with Specific Words and Strong Sentences
To write strong, clear sentences, you must first know the basics.
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© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

11. Writing with Specific Words and Strong Sentences
To write strong, clear sentences, you must first know the basics (cont’d).
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© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

12. Writing with Specific Words and Strong Sentences
In addition to knowing sentence basics, you should also check your sentences for style. You should:
Eliminate short, choppy sentences by combining some ideas.
Vary your sentence beginnings and lengths.
Change passive verbs to active verbs.
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Diego Cervo, 2014/Used under license from Shutterstock.com
© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

13. © 2016. Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
Closing Activity
Use what you have learned about voice, word choice, and sentences to complete two short writings.
1. Write about the same topic—such as why college is important—to two different audiences. Write:
An to a close friend who does not attend college
A paragraph for an official college brochure addressed to possible new students
2. Discuss the different choices you made in each writing. How do the voice, word choice and sentences differ in each writing?
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