13 Build each sentence on a strong verb and a strong subject.
Details		Weak Example	Strong Example
a) Use verbs that show action instead of verbs such as is, was, were, have, had, has, and got.		He was often destructive.	He often destroyed things.
		Lucy is the person that I wrote to.	I wrote to Lucy.
		There was a bird flying in the mulberry tree.	A bird flew in the mulberry tree.
		I was just sitting there helplessly watching it happen.	Helplessly, I watched it happen.
		She had behaviors that were inappropriate for the situation.	She behaved inappropriately for the situation.
B & C) The subject should perform the action in the sentence.		B) The ball was being kicked. (Very weak subject: the reader doesn’t even know who did it)	Mike kicked the ball. (Now it is clear.)
		C) The ball was being kicked by Mike. (Weak subject: The person that actually did it is just tagging along at the end.)	Mike kicked the ball. (The person that did it is now right up front.)
Quotes:
	The wishy-washy writer uses weak nouns (like destruction) instead of strong verbs (like destroy). The wimp writes, The storm resulted in the destruction of the building, instead of The storm destroyed the building. Patricia T. O’Conner			Never use the passive voice where you can use the active. George Orwell “Six Rules”