How do you feel about the present tense in the book?

Use this forum to discuss the February 2018 Book of the Month, "The Reel Sisters" by Michelle Cummings.
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londonmartine
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Re: How do you feel about the present tense in the book?

Post by londonmartine »

That's the important thing - that the use of present tense is consistent. I feel like it's not comfortable for most people, and when it comes to writing I've seen so many books which have tried to go for the present tense only to slip up and get it wrong, which then feels uncomfortable and unprofessional. Glad this book managed it, but I know what you mean - it can feel quite off-kilter.
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Post by atonykamau »

I am not really bothered by it in fact i prefer it.
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Post by Gerry_9 »

Present tense is not common in most novels but when used perfectly in the entire book it gives the book a feel of its happening now. It makes the book more involving since the reader grows or develops with the characters.
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Post by LoisCHenderson »

In the academic writing that I edit, the present tense is used in relation to the text of any information source (e.g. one would say "Stephens (2008) notes that crowding of tourism spots leads to the locals staying away from pubic venues during the height of the holiday season.") Such use of tense makes what the researcher says a point of ongoing relevance, rather than an abstraction that only held valid for some period in the past. Such relevancy can also be seen in relation to fictional text, such as in the present instance.
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Post by MollyEnter »

I honestly didn't notice the tense being odd. It seemed just right to me, especially considering I was learning so much about fly fishing during the experience.
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Post by rusalka »

That’s exactly the thing with present tense—it works perfectly when you forget about it. It starts out distracting almost surely (example: The Hunger Games trilogy), but if the story is good and the writing smooth, then you’ll automatically forget about paying attention to the tense and just become immersed.

Personally, I am a fan of that writing, but it is crucial that it is executed well.
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Post by michmc3 »

Melchi Asuma wrote: 25 Feb 2018, 03:36 I always feel that using the present tense in a novel for a writer is pretty daring. It takes very great authors to pull it off and the author of The Reel Sisters really did pull it off. Hats off to the author.
Thank you! ~Michelle Cummings
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Post by maggiechap »

Present tense has never really bothered me. I write in first person present tense and so do a lot of the authors I read so it isn't a problem. It does take certain finesse to do it correctly though. After a few pages, I found it actually helped me stay in the book more so than if it had been in past tense. But I think it just depends on what you are used to reading on a regular basis.
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Post by Acwoolet »

The present tense didn’t bother me, I think that it fit the book quite well. I think that it could have used either present or past tense, but it did make it more unique.
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Post by Tbunde5 »

I think it can be extremely difficult to write in the present tense, because we naturally tell a story in the past tense. I think it is a very effective tool to draw the reader into the action, making you feel like the story is happening around you and that you are a part of it. However, just one slip into another tense can bring down the entire story, like the penny in the movie Somewhere In Time.
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Post by Misael Carlos »

I think the use of present tense is not beneficial to a detective story because it will spoil the suspense since it will reveal his thoughts and analyses. To defer his findings while his investigation is ongoing will seem unnatural. Its use also takes a reader a while to get the hang of it; otherwise, it is not a problem really.
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Post by lbhatters »

I wrote a book in past tense and changed it to present tense. I didn't like the effect. I'm wondering if it made me feel too familiar to my own writing or whether it's just because the style is less popular and I wasn't used to it. I'm still not sure.
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Post by Sanyesto »

Use of present tense usually feels okay to me as it makes me more engaged to the story.
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Post by Sanyesto »

maggiechap wrote: 23 Mar 2018, 15:16 Present tense has never really bothered me. I write in first person present tense and so do a lot of the authors I read so it isn't a problem. It does take certain finesse to do it correctly though. After a few pages, I found it actually helped me stay in the book more so than if it had been in past tense. But I think it just depends on what you are used to reading on a regular basis.
Exactly my thoughts
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Post by BookWild »

Maybe it's because most books I read are in past tense, but present tense is a distraction to me. I find it especially hard to read when it's first person and present tense together.

I prefer third person and past tense. It helps me to imagine the characters and see them as if they were real when the story is told as though it already happened.
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