Realization halfway though first draft I need to switch tenses--advice?

owlish · Aug 10, 2014

Here's the situation: I'm a little more than halfway through the first draft of my novel. I flip-flopped on tense for a while before eventually settling on present because it felt right at the time and I enjoyed the immediacy of each scene. But as I keep writing, I feel like the story would be better told in past tense--with a little bit of distance between the narrator and the story at hand. I think it would come across less exhausting and punchy, and would feel more natural.

I'm not 100% sure that this is the decision I want to make, but it's been sounding better and better over the past month or so knocking around in my brain. I guess my question is if I should just finish the first draft in present tense and then make the decision once the entire manuscript is done, or switch to past tense now and go back to edit/rewrite the first half once I start revisions. Either way it's going to be a pain, I realize, but perhaps one will disrupt my creative process less. Perhaps it doesn't matter, but I've been battling myself for the past month and can't make up my mind, which is hindering progress on the story.

Any advice/commiserating would be much appreciated.

SBibb · Aug 10, 2014

It's up to you, but if you're highly considering switching, I'd go ahead and write whichever feels most natural, regardless of what you've already written. If you like that tense, keep writing that and edit the rest once you're done. If you don't like that tense, then try something else as you continue writing, then make the necessary revisions later. A pain, yes, but it might be better to test these things out early on, that way you don't have to completely rewrite everything.

Just don't forget to check your later drafts for any tenses that weren't fixed during revisions.

I debated doing this for the first draft of the manuscript I was working on, but during the writing the tense I'd been using eventually settled as more natural. However, I suspect it may still undergo changes once I go back and review it after I've had time to give it a little distance.

SunshineonMe · Aug 10, 2014

Well I think SBibb has a great idea. Write it from where you are. And keep going until the MS is done. I wouldn't go back and edit yet because that could stop the creative flow.

Ketzel · Aug 10, 2014

If you really aren't sure, then in your shoes, I would keep going as I started until the end of the draft for a couple of reasons: (1) My uncertainty would make me wonder if the whole "past tense would be sooo much better" thoughts weren't an attempt by my insecurities and procrastination tendencies to derail my progress. (2) If, at the end, I decided to make the change, I'd have to edit the whole manuscript from beginning to end for any number of editorial reasons in any case, so making the tense changes at that point in one continuous process makes more sense to me than trying to edit a draft that is half in one tense, and half in another.

And for me, if I kept going in present tense, there'd always be the possibility that something in me would rise up and scream "Stop! STOP! This MUST be changed to past tense!" and then I would know for sure.

YMMV, of course

rwm4768 · Aug 10, 2014

I'd write it in past tense from where you are, and then I'd go back and revise the earlier portions. Why disrupt your first draft if you don't have to?

owlish · Aug 10, 2014

SunshineonMe said:
Well I think SBibb has a great idea. Write it from where you are. And keep going until the MS is done. I wouldn't go back and edit yet because that could stop the creative flow.

I totally agree with you in that there's no use going back to edit right now. That would definitely put a kink into the creative flow, and I'm not willing to risk that right now.

I'll have to think this over a little bit more, but thank you so much everyone thus far for all your insights. I can see the pros and cons to both options; which one will benefit me most? Not sure yet.

And of course, additional comments would be loved as I put off making a decision.

Debbie V · Aug 11, 2014

It may be that you need to finish telling the story in order to know which will work better. Keep going in whichever tense makes sense at the moment.

I once got three chapters in before realizing I had to change POV. The reason was reader confusion. The first person narrator simply had no reason to explain stuff to the reader. He just wouldn't have done so. The omniscient narrator worked much better. If your reason is that compelling, go back and start over. But you sound uncertain, so go forward and finish. The rest can be handled in revision .

Orianna2000 · Aug 11, 2014

The best advice I can give: You must understand that switching POV (changing from first-person to third, say) isn't as simple as changing "I" to "he" or "my" to "his." It requires a different mindset.

My first novel started out as third-person. I switched back and forth a couple times before settling on first-person, but it still didn't sound right. It was very flat. Eventually, I realized it was because I'd changed the tenses without compensating and making it truly first-person. I'd changed "she" to "I" and so forth, but it was dull and boring.

See, in first-person, you have the ability to see into the MC's thoughts and feelings--their inner perspective, as well as their outer senses. Once I took full advantage of what first-person perspective offered, the novel turned out a lot better!

Now, of course, I realize there is such a thing as close-third, which probably would have served me just as well. POV is more complicated than I first imagined, but once you research and practice it, you'll catch on. There are a couple of good books out there on perspective and POV. You might find these useful:

* Rivet Your Readers With Deep POV
* Characters & Viewpoint

Roxxsmom · Aug 12, 2014

rwm4768 said:
I'd write it in past tense from where you are, and then I'd go back and revise the earlier portions. Why disrupt your first draft if you don't have to?

This. First drafts are for rewriting, after all.

Wildlit · Aug 12, 2014

Oh, do I feel for you! I had the same thing happen to me, though it sounds like it was a little earlier in the process. It sucks... but the good news is that everything feels better once you settle on the best fit.

In my case, I went back and rewrote - for exactly the reason Orianna mentioned. The POV switch changed the story, not just the pronouns. But I also write in scenes and don't deal in "momentum" as much as other writers. Making the change in-situ and waiting until the next draft to fix the beginning might work better for you.

Realization halfway though first draft I need to switch tenses--advice?

owlish

SBibb

SunshineonMe

practical experience, FTW

Ketzel

Leaving on the 2:19

rwm4768

practical experience, FTW

owlish

Debbie V

Mentoring Myself and Others

Orianna2000

Freelance Writer

Roxxsmom

Beastly Fido

Wildlit