Subject: Tense has never really mattered to me.
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Posted on: 2016-02-10 04:40:00 UTC

In fact, part of why I've put off trying to get permission for so long is due to the fact that I just don't pick up on things like tense shifts. I write mainly in the past tense, but I have recently started writing a Black Lagoon fic that uses present tense, in part so I can learn how. It's also the first thing I've ever written in first person, as well.

I, for one, think that each one has a time and a place. I have started using present tense more for personal, character-driven narratives because of the excitement, while I now use past-tense for large, epic narratives. I must admit, writing with it took some getting used to, but now it's practically second nature.

Present tense really isn't a good idea when you want what you're writing to be 'serious' or clinical in some fashion, and it can sometimes limit how you write. Past tense is the same way, but less so, and in a different manner. Since I'm a satirical writer, I still mostly end up using past tense. It can make for better gags and jokes, or maybe I'm just better at being funny in past tense.

Probably a lot more than you were looking for, but since I've had a lot of recent experience with the two tenses, that's just how it went.

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