Tense

[Zhang]

Hi, I'm thinking of putting up a story to be critiqued. I wrote it all in the present tense. Would this be considered bad writing?

A short excerpt:

"[FONT=&quot]There are almost no other vehicles on this stretch of desert. So he takes notice of the many headlights approaching him on the opposite lane. The lights are moving from side to side, crisscrossing each other."
[/FONT]

 

[Ginkus]

Do you mean is writing in present tense considered bad writing? If so then I would say no it is not. I know people who actually prefer it. Helps them feel in the moment and all that as opposed to being in the past.

 

[dustinzgirl]

Tense has always confused me.

He ran towards the pavilion.

As he ran towards the pavilion, he cried.

He was crying as he ran towards the pavilion.

Crying, he was running to the pavilion.

See, tense is confusing.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

For many readers it's enough of a distraction that it takes them out of the moment. It also, for some reason, lends itself to over-use of the passive voice, which can make a story sound monotonous and boring -- so that's one major pitfall you need to watch out for if you're writing in the present tense.

In and of itself, no, it's not considered bad writing. I've seen it done very well indeed (Angela Carter wrote many wonderful stories in the present tense). Some people like it because they think it sounds edgy and experimental; others instantly have a negative reaction because they've seen too many dismal examples.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Tense has always confused me.

He ran towards the pavilion.

As he ran towards the pavilion, he cried.

He was crying as he ran towards the pavilion.

Crying, he was running to the pavilion.

See, tense is confusing.

I think the problem is that you are confusing tense with voice, dusty. All those sentences are in the past tense.

 

[Peter Graham]

Teresa is absolutely right.

To be in the present tense, Dusty's sentences would need to read as follows:-

He ran towards the pavilion.

He runs towards the pavilion.

As he ran towards the pavilion, he cried.

As he runs towards the pavilion, he cries.

He was crying as he ran towards the pavilion.

He is crying as he runs towards the pavilion

Crying, he was running to the pavilion.

Crying, he runs towards the pavilion


There is no reason not to use the present tense, but you don't have to use it all of the time. I think it works best from the P.O.V of a first person narrator who is doing something exciting - walking into the haunted house or crouching behind a bush with a rifle waiting for the victim to emerge from a nearby building etc etc.

The present tense has a powerful sense of immediacy and suspense, which in turn means it can be a difficult job to do a whole novel in the present tense. This is why the past tense is so much more common - first person narrators sounding like they are looking back on a completed episode in their life (Flashman is a great example of this - it also allows hindsight and diversions to be included without breaking the dramatic flow).

In third person P.O.V, the past tense is also a lot easier - you don't run the risk of falling into the passive voice and/or losing the tension in the writing.

Regards,

Peter

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Teresa and Peter have already pointed out the major points about present tense. I’ll add a few thoughts.

Present tense is much rarer than past tense and tends to attracts attention to itself. The reader becomes aware of the writing in a more acute way. It can be a drawback.
Good handling of sentences is crucial in any tense, but I’d say that any slipshod writing is more apparent when you use the present. The best writers, of course, can use it without making it stand out. That is the secret: never have the reader stop in her tracks and react on the form instead of the story, the characters… unless the reader is one of us Chronics: we are twisted and warped, aren’t we?

Texts written in the present tense have a peculiar feel to them, a feel of immediacy that can be compelling. On the other hand, reading an entire novel written in the present can be tiring. Mystery short stories are a better arena.

Shifting of tense can be used to mark a passage, through a change in the pace. Of course, it must never be done within the same scene or—worse—the same paragraph, although dialogues can afford this shifting.
Think of a friend who is recounting a pub fight.

“The bloke spat on my shoes, and we began trading insults. I was not really interested in a fight, but he mentioned my sister’s night occupation. I riposted with a few assumptions on his mum’s way of life. And then, that idiot takes a swing at me. I dodge. He tries to trip me up. I send him sprawling on the floor… and…”

The shift of tense is meant here to make the audience experience the fight. The rhythm becomes more staccato and intense. The emotional content holds centre stage (well, not in my example, which is too short and basic to achieve that effect).

Present can also be used to mark a transition from the objective to the subjective: dreams, altered states of consciousness, fragments…

Finally, the present tense is the tense of general truth. This is the reason why we are using it here, presenting our views on the topic. Outside description, action and feeling, it can be preachy when used in the narrative.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Readers are so accustomed to the convention of writing fiction in the past tense, the mind automatically does the mental gymnastics necessary to interpret the events described as the present tense (of the story). Suspense is therefore as easily maintained (except in first person POV) as when writing in the present tense.

And, of course, there is more to keeping a reader's interest than mere suspense, but it's easy to fall into the trap of concentrating on that one aspect, at the expense of everything else that makes a good story and superior writing.

I've written exactly one story in the present tense. Looking back, I don't think that it added anything to the story; in fact, I rather suspect that the whole thing would have read more smoothly if I hadn't been trying to be so tremendously clever. But it was a piece of short fiction, and when I'm writing short stories I do like to try out things I wouldn't necessarily want to do at novel length.

 

[jackokent]

Nick Hornby seems to be able to do good present tense novels but he does go for 1st person which might make it easier. Seem to recall Ian Banks does one well also.... maybe again 1st person.

I wouldn't necessarily say it wasn't good writing but I am not sure it would be easy. I'd be interested to read some Zhang.

 

[Zhang]

Thank you, all. That really clears things up for me.

Jack, some of that story has been posted in the Workshop forum.

 

[Ursa major]

Having relied on ill-remembered Latin lessons to remember my tenses for too long, a few years ago I bought a book on English grammar: the Oxford Everyday Grammar.

Regarding tenses, the book stated that English had but two: present and past. It turns out they are talking about modification of the verb word, which may or may not be relevant to them, but less so for the rest of us. (There would, to use a verb discussed in the last few weeks, be I pass and I passed.)

However, edging into the real world, they identified twelve active (yes 12) 'tenses', as follows.

Present:
- Simple: I pass (10)
- Continuous: I am passing (5)
- Perfect: I have passed (2)
- Perfect Continuous: I have been passing (1)

Past:
- Simple: I passed (3)
- Continuous: I was passing (2)
- Perfect: I had passed (3)
- Perfect Continuous: I had been passing (2)

Future:
- Simple: I shall pass (2)
- Continuous: I shall be passing (1)
- Perfect: I shall have passed (1)
- Perfect Continuous: I shall have been passing (1)

I won't bore everyone with the twelve passive forms, save to say that the book's example of the passive future perfect continuous is (and take a deep breath): I shall have been being bitten, and if that doesn't drive one to be twice shy, I don't know what will.

Oh, and the numbers in brackets? Those are the number of different ways in which each form can be used, according to the book! So there's little chance of any of us stumbling over our tenses in future; we'll all be perfect, if not passive.

 

[dustinzgirl]

I adore you all for trying to be helpful, but now I am more confused than ever.

Look, I have 30 days to finish my great novel, since it was supposed to be completed before I turned 30. Be more helpful, or my midlife crisis will seep into the forums and then you will all go crazy like me.

OK I'm kidding!

But, I'm really confused with tenses, as anyone who has critiqued me (Chris, JD) would know.

 

[chrispenycate]

Oh, dear, they've changed all the names. The pluperfect is now the past perfect, the imperfect the simple past, and the conditional perfect? - no there are no conditions in which I am perfect. If I had had that as a list, would I not have been less impossible than I actually am, or at least am aiming to become?

 

[dustinzgirl]

Oh, dear, they've changed all the names. The pluperfect is now the past perfect, the imperfect the simple past, and the conditional perfect? - no there are no conditions in which I am perfect. If I had had that as a list, would I not have been less impossible than I actually am, or at least am aiming to become?

Gee Chris, thanks for clearing up the confusion for me!

 

[Erin99]

What's confusing you, Dusty? Perhaps someone can help, if you explain...

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I think for all practical purposes all you need to know is the past, the present, the future, and the past-(or plu-) perfect.

But if you have a sufficiently good ear (or eye) to tell what is right and what isn't, you don't really have to be able to recite the rules chapter and verse. It's only when something sounds or looks wrong that it helps to know the rule, so that you can fix it.

In short, the answer is to write "perfectly" at all times, and none of this will ever come up.

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Present tense is not bad in itself. It is just difficult to use well. That is what we were trying to point out.

Like multiple POV, past tense in not illegal. It is just one more complication (as Teresa said) in the already complicated Land of Writing.

Before choosing, know the darped thing, otherwise you will encounter a lot of hardships---which do not exist if you use good old past tense (and his various avatars).

A few examples will lift the fog about the use of present tense.

This one is basic grammar. It is the indispensable foundation.

Verb Tense Consistency

The second one is about writing children's books. It is useful even if you are writing for YA or A. Basic things to know, again.

Writing a Children's Book - Beginning your Book. - free Suite101 course


The third web page, after a general introduction, shows shifts in tense. This is to ponder after mastering the general rules.

Time01

 

[Ursa major]

Oh, dear, they've changed all the names. The pluperfect is now the past perfect, the imperfect the simple past, and the conditional perfect? - no there are no conditions in which I am perfect. If I had had that as a list, would I not have been less impossible than I actually am, or at least am aiming to become?

I think what first unnerved me was the idea that what I had known as the Perfect Tense is considered in this scheme to be a present tense.

As to the original point about writing in the present (I won't use the word tense), the truth is, it will involve many of these tenses. When we talk to people, it's in the present, but all those tense-words (will, shall, have, had, shall have, etc.), they all crop up now and then. So what it comes down to, apart from being clear about what the tense words imply, is whether it sounds right, whether it has the right tone, whether the reader will think it's happening now.

But then I'm an amateur who needs to buy a book about it, so what do I know?

 

[Giovanna Clairval]

Like multiple POV, past tense in not illegal. It is just one more complication (as Teresa said) in the already complicated Land of Writing.

Hah ha! I meant "present tense"... The past is taking over!

And yes, Ursa, using the present entails using all the other tenses (darp!).

My first link was about tense consitency.