{"id":62460,"date":"2022-03-12T22:51:52","date_gmt":"2022-03-13T02:51:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=62460"},"modified":"2022-03-18T11:40:20","modified_gmt":"2022-03-18T15:40:20","slug":"writing-tense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>What tense should you write in? What are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The two most common writing tenses are present and past. The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events, so make sure to choose the right one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Here&#8217;s how to decide which tense you should use in your writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-tense-should-you-use\"><strong>What Tense Should You Use?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Create <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/clarity-in-writing\/\">clarity in your writing<\/a> by deciding what tense you\u2019ll write in and using that tense consistently throughout your piece. \u00a0Zinsser discusses the two most common writing tenses: past and present.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Past tense discusses events that happened in the past. Write in past tense when you\u2019re looking back on an event. For example, \u201cI walked to the store,\u201d or \u201cLauren turned to Joe and asked him a question.\u201d<\/li><li>Present tense discusses events in the current moment. Use present tense when you\u2019re writing about things as they\u2019re happening. For example, \u201cI\u2019m walking to the store,\u201d or \u201cLauren turns to Joe and asks him a question.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: Although Zinsser doesn\u2019t discuss it, there is also the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Future_tense\">future tense<\/a>, which discusses events that haven\u2019t\u2014but are expected\u2014to happen. In English, our version of future tense uses \u201cwill\u201d and a verb, such as in, \u201cI <em>will<\/em> go to the store.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Zinsser explains that you should choose one main tense to tell your story, and use different tenses as appropriate. For example, if you\u2019re telling a story using present tense and someone tells the narrator (in the present) about a story that happened to them (in the past), writing in a different tense for this dialogue is warranted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But, if you switch your <em>primary<\/em> tense, you\u2019ll confuse your reader because they won\u2019t be sure of the chronology of events. Using the example from the previous section, let\u2019s say Beth wrote, \u201cI had such a great time! The water is freezing, but I\u2019m still swimming.\u201d At first she speaks in past tense, and then she switches to present tense. Switching the second sentence to present tense throws off the logic of Beth\u2019s story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-to-choose-a-tense\"><strong>How to Choose a Tense<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While Zinsser discusses the importance of a consistent tense in eliminating reader confusion, <a href=\"https:\/\/thewritepractice.com\/past-tense-vs-present-tense\/\">each tense can also create certain effects in your writing<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Present tense:<\/strong> When done correctly, present tense creates a cinematic effect. Like watching a movie, reading in present tense creates a sense of viewing the action as it unfolds.&nbsp;Present tense creates a closeness with the writer. The reader may feel like she\u2019s there with the writer as events happen.&nbsp;Because of this closeness, the present tense intensifies the emotions of a story. Readers find out information with the writer, so readers feel the same frustration, surprise, or betrayal that the writer does when writing the story.&nbsp;Finally, the present tense is more action-oriented. Thus if your story centers around action, rather than a person, place, or idea, present tense might be a better choice for you.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Past tense: <\/strong>You can use past tense to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-create-suspense-in-a-story\/\">create suspense<\/a>. Since you know how your story unfolds, you can choose what context to give the reader rather than telling the reader information as you learn it.&nbsp;Past tense can be more natural to read and write. Many readers and writers prefer past tense instead of present tense since writing is an act of reflecting on the past.&nbsp;While present tense primarily builds a narrative through present actions, past tense offers more opportunity for narration, such as exploring other time periods or other peoples\u2019 perspectives.<br>When writing, consider what effect you can achieve with your tense.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What tense should you write in? What are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use? The two most common writing tenses are present and past. The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events, so make sure to choose the right one. Here&#8217;s how to decide which tense you should use in your writing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":62529,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,15],"tags":[588],"class_list":["post-62460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication","category-education","tag-on-writing-well","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1039\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"562\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\"},\"headline\":\"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\"},\"wordCount\":624,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"On Writing Well\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Communication\",\"Education\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\",\"name\":\"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00\",\"description\":\"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg\",\"width\":1039,\"height\":562},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\",\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Hannah Aster\"},\"description\":\"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.\",\"knowsAbout\":[\"Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing\"],\"jobTitle\":\"SEO Team Lead\",\"worksFor\":\"Shortform\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense - Shortform Books","description":"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense","og_description":"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1039,"height":562,"url":"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Hannah Aster","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Hannah Aster","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/"},"author":{"name":"Hannah Aster","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f"},"headline":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense","datePublished":"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00","dateModified":"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/"},"wordCount":624,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","keywords":["On Writing Well"],"articleSection":["Communication","Education"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/","name":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","datePublished":"2022-03-13T02:51:52+00:00","dateModified":"2022-03-18T15:40:20+00:00","description":"The tenses help your reader situate themselves in the timeline of events. Here are some things to consider when choosing which tense to use.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","width":1039,"height":562},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/writing-tense\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Choose a Correct Writing Tense"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f","name":"Hannah Aster","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Hannah Aster"},"description":"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.","knowsAbout":["Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing"],"jobTitle":"SEO Team Lead","worksFor":"Shortform","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/pen-writing.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62460"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62460\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62671,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62460\/revisions\/62671"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62529"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}