Young Writers Society

Hey i was just looking for opinions on the pros and cons of writing in present tense VS the pros and cons of writing in past tense. What to you personally prefer and how what experience have you had with your writing in tenses?

Also, switching between tenses, its it OK? good? bad? When should it be used and is it a good idea to integrate different tenses in a piece of fiction between paragraphs to symbolize a different time/ atmosphere/setting/perspective?

^ Also the above for third and first person, is it OK to integrate between chapters/ paragraphs?

Past tense is very much the norm. I've written in both, and past tense tends to be the one that flows the most naturally, both in writing and in reading.

Both tenses can be used very well, and it takes practice in each. If done right, there really aren't any pros and cons to either.

One thing to keep in mind about tense switches is they need a very clear defining moment. Something like:

1- Scene break.
This is the most common one, especially if you're using present tense but also showing flashbacks. It's a subtle literary technique where you denote the past with past tense and the present with present tense.

2- Italics, ie- character thoughts/flashbacks
For thoughts or flashbacks, you can change tenses (especially if you're writing in past tense and thoughts/flashbacks are in present). This is a visual clue to the reader that the tenses are changing for a reason.

Any other times you change tenses, it tends to look like a mistake.

Also, I think you're asking about point of view in there? I'll try to answer as best I can:

So long as you have a reason for switching points of view, you're fine. Normally, first person is inserted into third person when you're doing flashbacks or character thoughts. These would be marked by italics of scene breaks.

As with everything in writing, haphazard changes tend to look really sloppy. Make sure each change has a reason and some sort of clue to the reader why it's happening (such as a scene break with a different setting or italics).

I write in third person, past tense because that is what is most natural for me to write it. I tend to feel like first person sounds the same in my head no matter how different a character is from another first person pov character in a different story. I also personally feel like present tense is kind of weird to write in/even to read. But it can be done well!

Rosey pretty much covered most of the points in switching tenses and points of view. I just wanted to add that you can take whatever creative license you want with writing. So long as it's consistent (and separated off in a way that doesn't confuse a reader) then I find it's acceptable to do. You can get really interesting artistic effects by switching tenses or povs that could really improve a piece of fiction (that being said, done wrong it can really hurt a piece of fiction).

It all just depends on how effectively you do it. Artists break rules all the time.

Hmm, writing in present tense? I've seen it work---but usually only in first person POV. No offense, but it sounds kind of cheesy in third person POV

"He runs to the phone and picks it up."

As opposed to:

"He ran to the phone and picked it up."

When it is used, as I said, I've only seen it in first person. Why? Well, it just worked out better, I supposed. But personally, I still think it's limiting and cheesy. But personal preferences here, you might like it. Just keep in mind that whatever way you choose, it must fit the story and serve a purpose. Mostly the purpose of clarity, and it should also compliment your theme. No offense, but I think it's really actually difficult to create clarity with present tense. Although people use it in sensational shorts and such, I've rarely seen it in novels or longer stories, and even then only experianced authors with a foot in the publishing industry manage to get any of those "experimental" stuff in there.
But hey, if you want to try it, then go all for it. Who's to limit your creativity? Just be aware that it might take more conscience effort and end up sounding stiff and forced...strive for efficiency, but also make sure YOU feel comfortable and enjoy writing in that style. And really, the only way to tell what you like is to try it out. So...write! And have fun while you're at it...don't take these things too seriously, after all.

The when/how to switch tenses has been nicely answered already so I'm just popping by to respectfully disagree with the above post because present tense is great and amazing and also my favorite.

The thing with it, I find, is that people are a bit weirded out at first simply because, as Rosey said, the norm is past tense--making any consistent non-flashbacks/time-shenanigans/dreams chunks of present tense narrative look weird because, hey, guess what, people are thrown off by things that are different from what they're used to! And the thing is, since there's not much of it around and the ratio of quality:mediocre stuff is about the same as for past-tense stuff, well, odds are what most people read falls in the more lackluster part and so they dismiss it out of hand.

Which is a waste, IMO, because present tense done well has some really cool things going for it! For one, it tends to convey a more immediate tone to the action: where in past tense things have happened at some point in time, in present tense things are happening now and that can give you a really nice touch of urgency (which is why you'll see some people changing tenses in suspenseful/action moments, because they're taking advantage of that). For another, though this is more subjective, I find it sounds more--casual, I suppose? in the sense that in some ways limited third person PoVs sound more natural in it, like they're seeing things as they unfold and the reactions we the readers read about are as they're happening, when in past tense the same reactions can be a bit weird because it's like you're looking at it in retrospect and it's less vivid.

Bottom line though is that you should use the tense you feel the most comfortable writing in slash the one the story seems to work better with, and don't feel like you have to stick to past tense just because that's the way most people do it. Present tense is amazing and needs more love.