Tense stuff(;
Not quite back by popular demand, but back because I COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT TENSES. Ahh stupid me~
I HATE VERB TENSES. But I’m doing it because I love you guys XD
It was pointed out to me (and rightly so) that tenses are probably the most difficult thing for ff writers to get the hang of when writing in a language that isn’t their first, so while I’m still frantically revising for my English language exam tomorrow I thought I’d go over tenses with you guys. I’ll probably add a link to this post at the bottom of the other one about sentences and cohesion so it’s easier to find(:
Unlike the other post which was mainly about variation within writing, this is not. THE MOST IMPORTANT thing to always remember about tenses when writing, is to stick to the same tense throughout your writing.
Obviously there are exceptions as always because language was created just to confuse us all the most common being if a character in your story suddenly decides to think to the future while your main tense is past. Or flashbacks. And if you would like a fancy word for flashbacks, they are also known as ~analepsis~(plural analepses) Where as a ‘flash forward’ would be prolepsis (:
Anyway here is a table with examples using the verb ‘to take’. Substitute the verb I’ve chosen for another, and it still works.
Okay so assuming everyone already gets the idea of past, present and future simple forms, we move on to the Progressive forms.
So progressive forms, even when used in past tense writing have an element of being in the present tense, notice how in the table above the verb ‘to take’ still ends in ‘ing’ even in past and future tense.
Present progressive - the tense describes an ongoing action happening as the statement is written. The tense is formed by using am/is/are with the verb form ending in -ing. And I shall use Yamapi as my example bunny today just because.
“Yamapi is singing” - “I am singing” - “NewS are singing”
Past progressive - Past progressive tense describes a past action which was happening when another action occurred. This tense is formed by using was/were with the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi was singing” - “NewS were singing” << (please note the change from singular to plural, Yamapi to NewS)
Future progressive - Future progressive tense describes an ongoing or continuous action that will take place in the future. This tense is formed by using will be or shall be with the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi will be singing” - “Yamapi shall be singing”
As you can probably see ‘shall be’ is a little more formal ^-^
Perfective forms
Present perfective tense - Describes an action that happened at an indefinite time in the past or that began in the past and continues in the present.
This tense is formed with has/have with the past participle of the verb.
Most past participles end in -ed. Irregular verbs have special past participles that , sorry kids, you just got to learn ‘em :/ But I haven’t read a ff that says “he runned” yet, so I think you’ll all be fine haha XD
“Yamapi has hidden Jin’s phone, just for fun.” - “Yamapi and Ryo have hidden Jin’s phone, just for fun.”
Past perfective tense - describes an action that took place in the past before another past action. (that’s a bit of a dodgy explanation I’m sorry) And it’s formed by using had with the past participle of the verb.
“Yamapi had known Jin could be stupid, but he still managed to surprise him sometimes”
I keep using irregular past participles I’m sorry, all the regular ones seem to have just disappeared from my brain right now O.o
Future perfective tense - describes an action that will occur in the future before some other action.
This tense is formed by using will have with the past participle of the verb.
“By the time it gets to 5pm, Yamapi will have finished recording”
Oh look what we have here Perfect progressive forms.
Actually I quite like these, they are like a mixture of the two we’ve just gone through and are also more common in past tense pieces of writing.
Present perfect progressive tense - describes an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future.
Formed by using has/have been and the present participle of the verb (the verb form ending in -ing).
“Yamapi has been considering the mental state of his bandmates”
Past perfect progressive tense - describes a past, ongoing action that was completed before some other past action.
This tense is formed by using had been and uses the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi had been eating his dinner in peace”
Future perfect progressive tense - describes a future, ongoing action that will occur before sometime in the future.
Formed by using will have been and the present participle of the verb (the verb form ending in -ing).
“In 2012, Yamapi will have been dancing and singing for Johnny’s Entertainment for 16 years”
..Phew, okay I think I’m done. Sorry this has been more of a "this is how it goes soz an' all that" kind of post rather than the last one which was more about bending it to your own piece of writing.
I was so stupid to have left tenses out in the first place when so many people seem to have trouble with them. Again if you don't get something tell me in a comment and I'll try to explain it better ^-^
Okay, happy writing my dears ^-^ bai bai x
I HATE VERB TENSES. But I’m doing it because I love you guys XD
It was pointed out to me (and rightly so) that tenses are probably the most difficult thing for ff writers to get the hang of when writing in a language that isn’t their first, so while I’m still frantically revising for my English language exam tomorrow I thought I’d go over tenses with you guys. I’ll probably add a link to this post at the bottom of the other one about sentences and cohesion so it’s easier to find(:
Unlike the other post which was mainly about variation within writing, this is not. THE MOST IMPORTANT thing to always remember about tenses when writing, is to stick to the same tense throughout your writing.
Obviously there are exceptions as always because language was created just to confuse us all the most common being if a character in your story suddenly decides to think to the future while your main tense is past. Or flashbacks. And if you would like a fancy word for flashbacks, they are also known as ~analepsis~(plural analepses) Where as a ‘flash forward’ would be prolepsis (:
Anyway here is a table with examples using the verb ‘to take’. Substitute the verb I’ve chosen for another, and it still works.
Okay so assuming everyone already gets the idea of past, present and future simple forms, we move on to the Progressive forms.
So progressive forms, even when used in past tense writing have an element of being in the present tense, notice how in the table above the verb ‘to take’ still ends in ‘ing’ even in past and future tense.
Present progressive - the tense describes an ongoing action happening as the statement is written. The tense is formed by using am/is/are with the verb form ending in -ing. And I shall use Yamapi as my example bunny today just because.
“Yamapi is singing” - “I am singing” - “NewS are singing”
Past progressive - Past progressive tense describes a past action which was happening when another action occurred. This tense is formed by using was/were with the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi was singing” - “NewS were singing” << (please note the change from singular to plural, Yamapi to NewS)
Future progressive - Future progressive tense describes an ongoing or continuous action that will take place in the future. This tense is formed by using will be or shall be with the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi will be singing” - “Yamapi shall be singing”
As you can probably see ‘shall be’ is a little more formal ^-^
Perfective forms
Present perfective tense - Describes an action that happened at an indefinite time in the past or that began in the past and continues in the present.
This tense is formed with has/have with the past participle of the verb.
Most past participles end in -ed. Irregular verbs have special past participles that , sorry kids, you just got to learn ‘em :/ But I haven’t read a ff that says “he runned” yet, so I think you’ll all be fine haha XD
“Yamapi has hidden Jin’s phone, just for fun.” - “Yamapi and Ryo have hidden Jin’s phone, just for fun.”
Past perfective tense - describes an action that took place in the past before another past action. (that’s a bit of a dodgy explanation I’m sorry) And it’s formed by using had with the past participle of the verb.
“Yamapi had known Jin could be stupid, but he still managed to surprise him sometimes”
I keep using irregular past participles I’m sorry, all the regular ones seem to have just disappeared from my brain right now O.o
Future perfective tense - describes an action that will occur in the future before some other action.
This tense is formed by using will have with the past participle of the verb.
“By the time it gets to 5pm, Yamapi will have finished recording”
Oh look what we have here Perfect progressive forms.
Actually I quite like these, they are like a mixture of the two we’ve just gone through and are also more common in past tense pieces of writing.
Present perfect progressive tense - describes an action that began in the past, continues in the present, and may continue into the future.
Formed by using has/have been and the present participle of the verb (the verb form ending in -ing).
“Yamapi has been considering the mental state of his bandmates”
Past perfect progressive tense - describes a past, ongoing action that was completed before some other past action.
This tense is formed by using had been and uses the verb form ending in -ing.
“Yamapi had been eating his dinner in peace”
Future perfect progressive tense - describes a future, ongoing action that will occur before sometime in the future.
Formed by using will have been and the present participle of the verb (the verb form ending in -ing).
“In 2012, Yamapi will have been dancing and singing for Johnny’s Entertainment for 16 years”
..Phew, okay I think I’m done. Sorry this has been more of a "this is how it goes soz an' all that" kind of post rather than the last one which was more about bending it to your own piece of writing.
I was so stupid to have left tenses out in the first place when so many people seem to have trouble with them. Again if you don't get something tell me in a comment and I'll try to explain it better ^-^
Okay, happy writing my dears ^-^ bai bai x