The anti-prompt for the July 2025 Not Quite Write Prize for Flash Fiction challenges writers to Break the rule, ‘Use active voice’.
Whether you’ve been bashing your head against our anti-prompts for two years, or you’re completely green to the Not Quite Write experience, we understand that the concept of the anti-prompt can be confusing. That’s why we’ve committed to providing a little more information this round on how to meet the brief.
Please note: this article deals with breaking the rule for the purposes of the July 2025 Not Quite Write Prize for Flash Fiction. If you’d like to learn more about the writing rule itself (and how the active and passive voices are used in writing), check out our companion article, Writing rules: Use active voice.
We’ll be clear right upfront: the Not Quite Write Prize judges take a relaxed approach to the anti-prompt, and we welcome you to apply your own creative twist to this challenge. More than anything, we just want you to tell us a great story! Having said this, we value highly those stories which break the rule in style, and which go on to serve as the ‘exception that proves the rule’.
There are several different ways you might interpret the specific language of this anti-prompt, and all interpretations are valid. We’ve provided some suggestions, along with our comments on each.
| Possible interpretation | Thoughts from the judges | What to watch out for |
| Don’t use active voice at all in your story You might for example consider how passive voice is used in other fields such as scientific or legal writing, and find a way to tell a story entirely using one of these styles. | Taking a ‘purist’ approach by fully eschewing active voice in favour of passive voice is an incredibly bold move. In our view, it would be very difficult to craft a compelling narrative this way (for all the reasons listed in our companion article, Writing rules: Use active voice). But we’ve seen entrants do the impossible before! | The challenge with this interpretation is to find a way to make passive voice work for your story. The ‘rules’ are there for a reason: ignore them at your peril! |
| Use passive voice extensively in your story Similar to the above approach, you might adopt a writing style in which passive voice feels natural and appropriate, and use this as the foundation upon which you build your story. | This more flexible (but nonetheless bold) interpretation allows you to feature passive voice prominently without entirely limiting your access to active voice. By giving yourself this freedom, you’re also giving yourself the power to construct your story in a way which prioritises the quality of your storytelling where needed. | Remember: the judges aren’t looking for a well-constructed incident report, they’re looking for a compelling piece of fiction! |
| Use passive voice at least once in your story It’s common for passive voice to sneak through in a first draft regardless of one’s intention. This approach might be as simple as not editing that sneaky instance out. | This is a simple yet perfectly acceptable way to meet the brief. This may be the best choice if you’re new to writing, new to Not Quite Write, or if a DNF* is on the cards. *DNF = ‘Did Not Finish’ (failed to submit a story by the deadline). | Try to avoid treating the challenge as a checkbox. Even a single instance of passive voice can feel powerful if it serves the story. Make it count. |
| Use passive voice at least once in your story in an intentional or strategic way Using the guidance from the article above as inspiration, you might for example use active voice to create mystery or suspense. | A simple but strategic approach is among the ‘safer’ choices, yet it’s nonetheless ripe with creative potential. You might take a subtle approach, or you might make the usage a central feature of your story. We expect this to be one of the paths most frequently trodden, inspiring an array of creative and nuanced takes. | We won’t be choosing a winner based on the strength of its creative concept alone. Make sure you’re delivering a story, complete with a hooking setup, stakes and conflict, and above all, a satisfying conclusion. |
| Create a story concept centred on the anti-prompt challenge itself You might take a ‘meta’ approach to the challenge and craft a story featuring a character who is themself wrestling with the writing rule. | This can be a smart approach, especially if the passive voice becomes a theme in the narrative, for example playing with the idea of agency and powerlessness. It’s also inherently relatable to an audience composed entirely of other writers. | Unfortunately, the ‘writer writes about writing’ meta-story is a common trope in the competition setting (refer to ‘Writer Blocked’ from our list of Flash Fiction Tropes). If you take this approach, you’ll need to find a surprising or emotionally engaging angle to lift your story above the pack. |
| Take a ‘high concept’ approach which completely ignores the grammar aspect You might adopt a literal interpretation that allows you to hold onto active voice while still meeting the brief. For example, you might create a near-future world in which a dictatorship is forcing the use of a piece of technology known as ‘ActiveVoice,’ but your protagonist refuses to comply. | It’s no secret that many writers are drawn to the Not Quite Write Prize because of its rule-breaking reputation, and some entrants take that rule-breaking to the next level! It’s worth noting that many of your fellow contestants consider this sort of indirect approach ‘cheating,’ however from the judges’ perspective, it’s perfectly acceptable. | The challenge here is to go beyond the ‘high concept’ to deliver an emotionally engaging piece of fiction which does more than simply showcase a clever or unique idea. |
| Some unique mix of the above You might temper an ‘outside the box’ interpretation of the anti-prompt with an instance or two of passive voice, just to be sure. | Occasionally, a couple of interpretations will slot together in a satisfying way. More often than not however, it’s authors hedging their bets on a wild take on the anti-prompt by wrapping it up in a ‘safer’ approach. | If your interpretation is a risky one, feel free to use the ‘Brief Explanation’ field in the submission form to help us connect the dots. Your risky approach may not pay off in the form of a win, but the only way to find out is to commit. |
| Something else entirely You might go poetic, philosophical, comedic, surreal; perform an interpretive dance and transmit it directly into our brains via the 5G network; fly so close to the sun that you burn your tail feather; live, damn it, LIVE. | This is the fun part where you blow our minds with your weird and wonderful takes. Nothing is off the table! (Okay, let’s be real: the wildest approach will fail 99.9999% of the time. But that 0.0001%? That’s the shit dreams are made of.) | Any story written ‘in the spirit of’ the anti-prompt (in other words where we can see evidence that you’ve engaged with the challenge on some level) will be a success in our book, but the competition does have some rules (like the word count, the deadline, a strict AI policy etc). Be warned: if you go too hard, you may fail, but at least you’ll fail spectacularly. |
Remember: The anti-prompt is only one part of the challenge, so don’t get too hung up on it. A strong story will rise to the top, even if you take a ‘light touch’ approach to the anti-prompt. Your number one goal should always remain to tell a great story!
Further reading/listening:
- Writing rules: Use active voice
- WTF is an anti-prompt?
- Read winning entries
- Listen to podcast episodes from previous rounds
If you need validation on your idea before getting started, try asking your fellow contestants in our online Community. They’re a friendly and helpful bunch!
About the future of the anti-prompt
We’ve had fun with the anti-prompt over the past two years, but we’re ready to make a change. In 2026, the Not Quite Write Prize for Flash Fiction prompts will deliver a brand new challenge unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. We can’t wait to see how you guys embrace the evolution!
For now, enjoy what will be our second-last anti-prompt round. Together, let’s make this the best round yet!