So far, we’ve learned there are two types of verbs–action or state of being–and they have a voice–active or passive. Now, we focus on the tense of our verbs.
You might think, when writing memoirs, we must always use the past tense. Well, that’s not necessarily true. We’ll look at a couple of examples where past and present tenses are combined effectively.
We’ll also study the advantages and disadvantages of present and past tenses.
Books referred to in lesson:
The attached is an excerpt from a story called “Whispers.” The first section is the way that the story was originally written, in past tense. The second section changes the verbs to present tense. Using present tense enhances the suspense of the story, but I think it would be challenging to write the story completely in present tense since the story covers three separate time frames.
Bravo, Millie. I think it reads well in both tenses but I actually prefer the past tense for some reason. This exercise in switching tenses displays the latitude of expression we have in English. As native speakers we don’t even realize how naturally we use the language until we’re asked to focus on a part. Your story is an excellent example of mechanics and mood. Thank you for posting it.
Millie, the paragraph written in the present tense created a sense of immediacy and brought me into the story. What a great comparison of past and present tense writing. Thx for sharing it.