Answer: Tense shifts in set phrases
igbc wants to know, is it ever okay to have a tense shift when using a phrase that is normally in a specific verb tense? (He closed his eyes because here it came - the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it was going to be.)
With examples from Bones and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Forgive me for drifting a little astray to start, but there’s a broader question here I’d like to touch on. The English language has a number of “set phrases” - groups of words that are consistently used together. They include clichés, idioms, proverbs and familiar quotations. Generally speaking, you should not alter these phrases. Readers are used to seeing them one way by definition, and changes may draw more attention to the phrase than you intend for it to receive.
The sheriff spoke to Booth, mistakenly dismissing Brennan entirely. “The body was found in a culvert about a mile west of here as the crow flies.”
You wouldn’t have the sheriff say, “as the egret flies” or “a mile west of here if you could go in a straight line like a crow.” Set phrases exist because that's how people use the language. However, that’s not to say you must never alter a set phrase. You can, provided you do so thoughtfully and with awareness of the effect it will have. After all, I would hate to have missed out on marvelous Buffy the Vampire Slayer lines like Jenny Calendar's "The end is seriously nigh." ("Prophecy Girl")
Okay, enough digression; igbc was asking about set phrases in which the verb usually appears in a specific tense, such as in the example so kindly provided, “here it comes.”
You have a few options here. You can recast the sentence so there is not a conflict with using the set phrase in its familiar verb tense. For the provided example, you could switch to the character’s thoughts:
He closed his eyes and thought, "Here it comes: the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it’s going to be."
Or you can rewrite it in such a way as to avoid using the set phrase altogether:
He closed his eyes in frustrated resignation, ready for the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it was going to be.
You can even go ahead and try changing the verb tense, as igbc did in the example. But if you choose that route, pay attention to it. Read the sentence out loud. Make sure it doesn’t seem awkward or sound unnatural with the changed verb tense.
The one thing you must not do is use a set phrase in an ungrammatical manner. It would be incorrect to preserve the verb tense of the set phrase if it differs from the verb tense of the surrounding story.
He closed his eyes because here it comes - the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it was going to be.
Yes, there are times when it would be okay to change the verb tense of a set phrase. But there are other options that will often better maintain the flow of your writing. I would look to those first.
With examples from Bones and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Forgive me for drifting a little astray to start, but there’s a broader question here I’d like to touch on. The English language has a number of “set phrases” - groups of words that are consistently used together. They include clichés, idioms, proverbs and familiar quotations. Generally speaking, you should not alter these phrases. Readers are used to seeing them one way by definition, and changes may draw more attention to the phrase than you intend for it to receive.
The sheriff spoke to Booth, mistakenly dismissing Brennan entirely. “The body was found in a culvert about a mile west of here as the crow flies.”
You wouldn’t have the sheriff say, “as the egret flies” or “a mile west of here if you could go in a straight line like a crow.” Set phrases exist because that's how people use the language. However, that’s not to say you must never alter a set phrase. You can, provided you do so thoughtfully and with awareness of the effect it will have. After all, I would hate to have missed out on marvelous Buffy the Vampire Slayer lines like Jenny Calendar's "The end is seriously nigh." ("Prophecy Girl")
Okay, enough digression; igbc was asking about set phrases in which the verb usually appears in a specific tense, such as in the example so kindly provided, “here it comes.”
You have a few options here. You can recast the sentence so there is not a conflict with using the set phrase in its familiar verb tense. For the provided example, you could switch to the character’s thoughts:
He closed his eyes and thought, "Here it comes: the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it’s going to be."
Or you can rewrite it in such a way as to avoid using the set phrase altogether:
He closed his eyes in frustrated resignation, ready for the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it was going to be.
You can even go ahead and try changing the verb tense, as igbc did in the example. But if you choose that route, pay attention to it. Read the sentence out loud. Make sure it doesn’t seem awkward or sound unnatural with the changed verb tense.
The one thing you must not do is use a set phrase in an ungrammatical manner. It would be incorrect to preserve the verb tense of the set phrase if it differs from the verb tense of the surrounding story.
He closed his eyes because here it comes - the speech, the confession, the apology, the whatever the fuck it was going to be.
Yes, there are times when it would be okay to change the verb tense of a set phrase. But there are other options that will often better maintain the flow of your writing. I would look to those first.