How does it affect the writing if you change tense?
Replies
If you write feeling tense it could give you back pain, or worse, effect your posture! I'd try to loosen up a little before you sit down. Try doing some Yoga beforehand, or maybe help yourself to a drink.
Without a reason, it is simply wrong, Balal. If you start out writing about a character in the past tense, you can't suddenly shift him into the present.
For example:
'Johnny picked the apple from the tree, and scrambled over the wall of the orchard. He crouched in the shadow of the hedge as the farmer went by. Once he's out of sight, Johnny crunches into the fruit. It's full of maggots, and he spat it out.'
This is a mess! If the story is told in the past tense - the events happened yesterday, or last year, or in history - Johnny can't suddenly shift into the present tense as if he's in front of us now.
Stick to the one you started using, and only change for a really good reason.
I'm assuming you mean changing the tense during the progression of a book? If you keep doing it for no reason, it will jar with readers and appear amateurish. If you do it for dramatic effect (like in flashbacks or unseen characters, for instance) it can add a tremendous amount to the narrative, and give a very satisfying 'otherness' (or difference) to a stylised form of writing.
If you write feeling tense it could give you back pain, or worse, effect your posture! I'd try to loosen up a little before you sit down. Try doing some Yoga beforehand, or maybe help yourself to a drink.
Without a reason, it is simply wrong, Balal. If you start out writing about a character in the past tense, you can't suddenly shift him into the present.
For example:
'Johnny picked the apple from the tree, and scrambled over the wall of the orchard. He crouched in the shadow of the hedge as the farmer went by. Once he's out of sight, Johnny crunches into the fruit. It's full of maggots, and he spat it out.'
This is a mess! If the story is told in the past tense - the events happened yesterday, or last year, or in history - Johnny can't suddenly shift into the present tense as if he's in front of us now.
Stick to the one you started using, and only change for a really good reason.
I'm assuming you mean changing the tense during the progression of a book? If you keep doing it for no reason, it will jar with readers and appear amateurish. If you do it for dramatic effect (like in flashbacks or unseen characters, for instance) it can add a tremendous amount to the narrative, and give a very satisfying 'otherness' (or difference) to a stylised form of writing.