Authors! Editors! What's up with the present tense?

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penguin

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 9:18 am

More and more often I am finding articles and books written in the present tense when it ough to be the past.

As in "I walk in the door and sit down on the chair." vs. "I walked in the door and sat down in the chair."

Is this supposed to engage the reader? To me it feels like someone telling a ghost story.
"You walk into a dark, dark room..."

I have been finding it so annoying!

Anyone relate? Have an explanation?

(I'm glad this is amother enabled. So if you're an editor or author you can feel free to maintain your anonymity!)

Last edited by penguin on Fri, Jul 26 2019, 2:03 pm; edited 1 time in total

youngishbear

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 10:09 am

I also find it incredibly annoying. It is not deeper or more engaging. Techniques such as present tense or first person perspective should be a meaningful artistic choice that affects how the reader experiences the story and not just a shtick.

chanatron1000

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 2:02 pm

I think it's a matter of personal taste. Real life occurs in present tense, but it does feel more natural to read a story in past tense.

Ravenclaw

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 2:31 pm

It's easier to write that way, but not to read.

amother

Wine

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 2:47 pm

I've seen it used very effectively when the first person narrator dies. Other than that, not a fan. For some reason, it always feels like whatever is happening is in slow-mo. I like that for certain scenes, but not the whole thing.

chanatron1000

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 3:32 pm

First person death scenes are always written in a very inexperienced tone.

singleagain

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 3:53 pm

chanatron1000 wrote:

First person death scenes are always written in a very inexperienced tone.

Does any author have that experience?

penguin

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:05 pm

Quote:

Does any author have that experience?

How about people who came back from near death experiences?

chanatron1000

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:13 pm

singleagain wrote:

Does any author have that experience?

Probably not.

singleagain

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:15 pm

Ghostwriters!

(Sorry couldn't resist the stupid joke.

Mama Bear

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:18 pm

we need a laugh emoji on this thread Very Happy

amother

Rose

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:23 pm

penguin wrote:

In my writing class my professor was crazy with this. She would take points off if you didn’t use present tense. Always felt strange to me too. Thinking it might be a fad

amother

Floralwhite

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:26 pm

Ravenclaw wrote:

It's easier to write that way, but not to read.

Having seen the amateur results of my students' efforts, I beg to differ. I think the present tense is really hard to pull off convincingly and to consistently sustain the appropriate rhythm.

youngishbear

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:28 pm

Mama Bear wrote:

we need a laugh emoji on this thread Very Happy

I've been asking for this for a while. We need a laugh button and "funniest post of the day" list. Some of us come here for pleasure and it would make it a lot easier to find the entertaining threads.

youngishbear

Fri, Jul 26 2019, 4:29 pm

amother [ Rose ] wrote:

In my writing class my professor was crazy with this. She would take points off if you didn’t use present tense. Always felt strange to me too. Thinking it might be a fad

What type of writing class?

Scotty

Wed, Aug 07 2019, 1:37 pm

It tastes different. (sorry mixing senses here but don't know how to explain it better)

each tense unlocks a different experience, both for the writer and reader - I guess each writer has got to look at his or her concept through the lens of each tense and see which fits better. Kind of another tool in the toolbox, like POV or unusual punctuation (or sound editing in a film, if you're going to take the simile further). Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But it always is fun to rewrite something in another tense and see how it completely changes the feel and drama of the piece!!

nicole81

Wed, Aug 07 2019, 2:02 pm

Ravenclaw wrote:

It's easier to write that way, but not to read.

Not that I've attempted to write any fiction in the past 15 years, but I distinctly remember writing in the past tense coming much more naturally and easily than writing present tense.

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