Choosing Your Tense in Writing
by Mary Kole | Former literary agent, now a freelance editor, writing teacher, and IP/story developer for major publishers and creators.
Anyone with a pulse on today’s publishing market may have noticed that tense in writing is a big issue. Which tense do you choose—present or past? This isn’t an arbitrary decision to a lot of writers, as it sets the tone for the entire project. (It’s also a big pain in the butt to change your writing tense over if you end up going in a different direction later.) Let’s dig into what you should consider when choosing tense in writing.
Defining Tense in Writing
Browsing the bookstore lately, you might notice the abundance of new releases written in the present tense. Many of them have become huge successes, from young adult to middle grade to women’s fiction to thriller. Some people call it a "trend" of present tense in writing, as opposed to the more “classic” past tense in writing.
Writers might debate whether the use of present tense writing is simply a passing fad, but ultimately, it doesn't matter. A novel’s tense is just one of the elements involved in the telling of that story. There are great books that take advantage of present tense in writing, and bad books. Similarly, there are smash hits that use past tense in writing, and books that struggle to implement it successfully. A writer might also choose one tense in writing for a certain project, and experiment with a different tense for another.
The argument for tense in writing breaks down along the following lines: present tense in writing offers inherent immediacy, and this reflects the culture we’re living in. Certain categories like young adult, middle grade, horror, and mystery/thriller/suspense work well with present tense. The latter categories tend to do well with present tense in writing because it also gives readers the sense that the situation is unfolding in the moment, and everything the character encounters is new information. (Past tense in writing can give a piece a more “reflective” tone of looking back on the past. When writing suspense, thriller, and mystery, this can be tricky because it can suggest that the character knows certain things before the reader does, so why withhold them? Withholding from a narrator works for an unreliable narrator, but otherwise, it could be a tricky choice to pull off.)
Choosing Tense In Writing
Does present tense in writing spark your interest or turn you away? Or are you impartial, opting to play around and match the tense to your project idea? Zooming out to the market, are agents and publishers searching for present tense books, or do they not care as much, as long as the story is told well? This is where I land. I’m less concerned with which tense is used, I’m more concerned with how it’s used and whether it fulfills the writer’s intentions.
The quality of the narrative and the story is what matters most. Present tense carries its own distinct challenges, which might be worth considering. It tends to invite more of a stream of consciousness approach as a tense in writing, which may or may not be appropriate for every project. If present tense turns your stomach or you find it’s not a fit for your own authorial voice, you’re welcome to use past tense. In terms of tense in writing, past tense is a workhorse. You can’t really go wrong with it.
When it comes to reading, audiences tend to forget about tense, as long as the writing, the story, the character, and the voice work seamlessly. If you want to think about a foundational narrative choice, you would do well to consider your point of view before you spend time worrying about tense in writing.
Given this, we hope that you are feeling a bit less … well … tense.
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