Catching the Present Tense Virus

NicoleMD · May 18, 2007

I totally have a book crush. I'm reading Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, and I normally am irked by novels written in the present tense, but he does it so well.

The only problem is that now when I'm working on my own WIP, which is in past tense, all my verbs seem...WRONG! It's like my brain is refusing to play nice. I just stare at the words, and think to myself "Is that right? No, it can't be right. Is it?"

Has anyone else ever had this problem? I've never had an issue before of reading in my genre while I write...I like evolving, but do I need to stick to books written in the same tense? That would be sad.

Nicole

Prawn · May 18, 2007

That is so odd! Check out my post on this thread from earlier today! I think an even better book of his is Cryptonomicon.

Moon Daughter · May 18, 2007

NicoleMD said:
I totally have a book crush. I'm reading Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, and I normally am irked by novels written in the present tense, but he does it so well.

The only problem is that now when I'm working on my own WIP, which is in past tense, all my verbs seem...WRONG! It's like my brain is refusing to play nice. I just stare at the words, and think to myself "Is that right? No, it can't be right. Is it?"

Has anyone else ever had this problem? I've never had an issue before of reading in my genre while I write...I like evolving, but do I need to stick to books written in the same tense? That would be sad.

Nicole

All the time.

But you don't have to stick to writing only one tense. Mix it up a little bit and have yourself a party. Or just write in whichever way makes you most comfortable.

The Lady · May 18, 2007

Present tense can be lovely to write. So profound. The only problem is it can tie you up in all kinds of grammatical knots as you go on into the story. From somebody who's writing a story with present tense chunks at the moment, but who's kinda anticipating having to change it all back to past.

ccarver30 · May 18, 2007

I have never read a book in the present tense... at least I don't think I have!!

NicoleMD · May 18, 2007

Prawn said:
That is so odd! Check out my post on this thread from earlier today! I think an even better book of his is Cryptonomicon.

Heh! What a coincidence.

Yeah, it only took me about 5 pages of reading Cryptonomicon to fall in love with Neal. You know that anxious feeling you get when you're reading a book you really like and you realize you're running out of pages? I had that feeling with about 950 pages to go!

It took me months to finish that doorstop.

Nicole

Nakhlasmoke · May 18, 2007

i had to get a first person present tense narrator out of my system, so I wrote it, knowing that it was pure indulgence on my part. Even then, I found I couldn't hold a whole novel in first - the story breaks to two other POVs in the third person present. It was fun though, and I do think I learned from it.

I say go with it, and if it feels right, perhaps that's how that particular book should be written. Or go read some books written in past tense until you are back in that groove.

Dave.C.Robinson · May 18, 2007

If it works for you, use it-- if it doesn't, run screaming away from it. For some things it works very well. For others it doesn't work at all. Neal Stephenson is particularly good with it.

scarletpeaches · May 18, 2007

The Lady said:
Present tense can be lovely to write. So profound. The only problem is it can tie you up in all kinds of grammatical knots as you go on into the story. From somebody who's writing a story with present tense chunks at the moment, but who's kinda anticipating having to change it all back to past.

I find present tense so much easier, grammatically speaking. Rather than having to fret about, "And when she had done that, after all that she had had blah blah..." I can simply write about the past in past tense, as you would in everyday conversation.

That said, my WIP is in past tense!

scribbler1382 · May 18, 2007

Never been a big fan, but I just read Shadow Man by Cody McFadyen (first person present tense) and quite enjoyed it.

NicoleMD · May 18, 2007

Nakhlasmoke said:
i had to get a first person present tense narrator out of my system, so I wrote it, knowing that it was pure indulgence on my part. Even then, I found I couldn't hold a whole novel in first - the story breaks to two other POVs in the third person present. It was fun though, and I do think I learned from it.

I say go with it, and if it feels right, perhaps that's how that particular book should be written. Or go read some books written in past tense until you are back in that groove.

An indulgence. That's a good way to put it. I did write a short piece yesterday in present tense, but it was non-fiction. I kind of liked it, though. Maybe something to play around with in the future.

Nicole

JoNightshade · May 18, 2007

I love writing in present tense. I developed a taste for it in college and now I wonder why everyone's so down on it. If it's done well, and if it suits the story-- it works. Many stories should be told in past tense, but there are others that can and should be told in present. So I don't think there's a need to avoid it just for the sake of avoidance. Also, it's unusual. I like unusual.

Dave.C.Robinson · May 18, 2007

I've discussed my feelings on present tense at length in the past, but I'll give a synopsis here.

I find that present tense is more likely to break my reader's trance and make me focus on the writing rather than the story. Bad writing in present tense is much more noticeable to me than bad writing in present tense. That's why I personally prefer past.

Present can work very well, but when it doesn't it really doesn't. At least as far as I'm concerned.

justpat · May 18, 2007

Me, I just mix present and past tense together until not even I know whats happened (happening?) (will happen?).

But while were on the subject of Neal Stephenson: I'm reading 'Snow Crash' right now, very good. And 'Cryptonomicon' was great. But I just could not get into the sequel 'Quicksilver'. Is that just me?

scarletpeaches · May 18, 2007

If people's complaint is that it's so unusual it yanks you out of the story, then surely the solution would be to use it until it becomes common and people see the story rather than the tense in which it's written?

maestrowork · May 18, 2007

ccarver30 said:
I have never read a book in the present tense... at least I don't think I have!!

Patricia Wood's (ORION) Lottery is in first/present. Mine (The Pacific Between) is also (in most part) in first/present.

Check them out!

scarletpeaches said:
I find present tense so much easier, grammatically speaking. Rather than having to fret about, "And when she had done that, after all that she had had blah blah..." I can simply write about the past in past tense, as you would in everyday conversation.

That said, my WIP is in past tense!

Same here. Present tense is easy -- none of that would have had had had had stuff and also the mind-boggling verb forms (is it run/ran/run or is it run/runned/runned? Huh?).

My WIP is also in past tense, but because it's BETTER, but because it's suitable for the story I'm telling. Same with present tense.

Dave.C.Robinson said:
I find that present tense is more likely to break my reader's trance and make me focus on the writing rather than the story. Bad writing in present tense is much more noticeable to me than bad writing in present tense. That's why I personally prefer past.

Present can work very well, but when it doesn't it really doesn't. At least as far as I'm concerned.

Well, if it's written badly, it really doesn't matter. If it's done well, it adds a new dimension, at least to me, to the feel/voice of the story. I don't find present tense (if done well) distracting at all. Bad writing, whatever the tense, is what breaks my trance and yanks me out of the story.

I do say present tense is harder to do well. The level of difficulty could be a deterrent, especially for new writers, much like the "omniscient" narrator/pov. There's nothing inherently wrong with either, just difficult to do well.

JoNightshade · May 18, 2007

Dave.C.Robinson said:
I find that present tense is more likely to break my reader's trance and make me focus on the writing rather than the story. Bad writing in present tense is much more noticeable to me than bad writing in present tense. That's why I personally prefer past.

Agreed. However, I won't read bad writing no matter what tense it's in, so it hardly matters!

:Sigh:: I've become such a snob... I think because my reading time is limited, I don't want to waste it.)

Will Lavender · May 18, 2007

scribbler1382 said:
Never been a big fan, but I just read Shadow Man by Cody McFadyen (first person present tense) and quite enjoyed it.

Glad you said that. I've been thinking of buying this book, and now I probably will based on your recommendation.

scribbler1382 · May 18, 2007

Will Lavender said:
Glad you said that. I've been thinking of buying this book, and now I probably will based on your recommendation.

Let me know what you think. He has a really nice narrative style and his hero, Smoky Barrett, is well-rounded, nuanced and unique.

The funny thing was there was an excerpt of his next book at the end of Shadow Man. Same style, genre, main character, etc. and I didn't like it nearly as much. Go figger.

blacbird · May 18, 2007

I can write badly with equal facility in either past or present tense.

caw

Jamesaritchie · May 18, 2007

Present

I can read short stories written in present tense, but novels are another matter. I've found two I liked, but both would have been better novels written in past tense.

Present tense does strike me as an indulgence, a gimmick, and usually a very bad form of writing. Not as bad or as indulgent as second person, but bad enough.

And, for me, it's an unbelievable tense. I simply can't suspend my disbelief enough to read a long work in present tense. Present tense gets old very fast.

scarletpeaches · May 18, 2007

The same could be said of past tense. Especially in first person, you can't take any danger the MC might be in seriously as you know they survive long enough to be able to relate the tale told in the novel.

I can see an objection to present in that it's obvious the narrator isn't telling the tale as the action happens, but...I've never had a problem suspending my disbelief in that way. I just tell myself the narrator is a non-interfering observer.

eliflauta · May 18, 2007

As long as you don't mix tenses, it's ok. Present tense can sometimes add a little something to the story; it makes it seem more alive, because the reader subconsiously envisions the plot as a current event, not just a story. Then again, it can also make a great muddle of everything if you're trying to write "Jody turned to Mark and says..." because it might be correct, but it probably will look wrong too.

Lotheus · May 20, 2007

justpat said:
Me, I just mix present and past tense together until not even I know whats happened (happening?) (will happen?).

But while were on the subject of Neal Stephenson: I'm reading 'Snow Crash' right now, very good. And 'Cryptonomicon' was great. But I just could not get into the sequel 'Quicksilver'. Is that just me?

Yeah, that book I could never quite get through. The other two are fantastic, though.

formlit · May 20, 2007

I have tried writing in the present tense. I suck at it. But when it is done well, it is wonderful. I haven't read those books, but I am going to now.

Catching the Present Tense Virus

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