Why do folks dislike present-tense writing?

[surenlicious]

Oh okay. I never even imagined it being to present in a certain age group of writers. According to someone who was pissy at my work being in present tense I was almost experiencing a culture shock like, 'okay so we're allergic to this now?'

[surenlicious]

Ooooh, okay this makes a little more sense to me. With English not being my first language, I never even knew apparently I have written my work in present tense. I wondered for a while what people meant haha. But this actually helps me understand it a little better, and it does sound a little uh...unique shall we say.

[FritzC]

I personally don't like it because it seems more rushed to me, but I'm also more used to older books since I'm a literature bachelor so its just a personal bias i think

[surenlicious]

Oh truly? I must not have read many present tense works to stumble on that conclusion then or maybe I'm very much overlooking it.

[FritzC]

I mean like, not the book itself seems rushed but the plot just seems more urgent to me and stresses me out more easily if its like "he runs to the store to see what happened", whereas "he ran to store to see what had happened" is more distant to me, but yeah I think it's a personal thing tbh

[surenlicious]

Oooooh, okay, yes I think I may understand it a bit better now, thank you.

[FritzC]

Maybe "dislike" was the wrong word also, I've read good books that were in present tense! So I'd say as long as you feel like it fits your story it's all good

[cherrystark]

@surenlicious Glad I could provide a little more clarity. Haha. If I do write in the first person, I like to do past tense, then in my head, I can pretend I'm the main character telling my story. @fChangster does have a point about timing when it comes to the present tense. I've noticed that stuff in the past tense gives the reader more time to experience what's going on. In the present tense, as soon as the moment passed, it's gone and we're moving on. haha

[surenlicious]

Ooooh, I see! Okay, that helps me even more haha. I appreciate the explanation, it gives me a better understanding now

[ninjashira]

I prefer reading past-tense third person or first person, because reading a book written that way feels like someone is telling me a story of something that actually happened.

Personally speaking, when I read something written in present tense, it feels like a story someone is making up on the fly, and just feels less planned and polished.

If a book is really, really good, then it can make up for being written in present tense, but it takes a lot for me to overcome that particular hurdle.

And if someone writes a book in second person, I am putting it down instantly (the only exception being Choose Your Own Adventure books).

[Dane_Sherbet]

Like others have said, it's unusual and rarely good enough to justify that creative decision. And I say that as someone who was writing something in present-tens recently. In my case I was basically DMing for an audience that decided things for the main character, so the second-person present-tense writing seemed appropriate.

[KRWright]

Wait there's a dislike for it? I write first person present and haven't recieved any backlash for it, nor has it affected my numbers? Generally, there are reasons for using it though. In mystery, for example, it really brings out the 'what do we know in the moment' feel. It also allows for immediacy of action as well, something that's super important for serialisation where people are consuming fiction in bitesize chunks and want to keep the pace moving.

I find that there's far more pushback against first/present among those who are used to reading novels in the Adult, Fantasy and Sci-Fi genres, and virtually no pushback for people who write in YA/NA or Romance genres. I've never had anyone lead a comment about using first-present except in a complimentary way when I changed up my style from third/past.

[Zaboem]

Complete opinion here, based on nothing:
Present tense is a stylist choice which suits some works better than others. Scripts (like playscripts) often are written in present 3rd person with stage directions, and no one seems to have a problem with it in that context.

It CAN be problematic if it's stacked on top of other iffy stylistic choices. I'm reading this story this week which is was written in 2nd person present tense. The author has a reason for doing it this way, but it isn't a strong reason. It's not something that I ever get used to. Had it been in 3rd person present or even 2nd person past, it would be have less unsettling.

[LostSpirit]

I don't think my point on the matter is going to differ a lot from what some of the other creators are saying here. I simply grew up reading authors who wrote their works in third person, past tense. I've always felt that first person present broke the dynamism of particular scenes. It's just an opinion, again. I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule. But during combat, for example. You lock onto one person, and it becomes hard to engage with the narrative in first person, even more when it's written with a present tense format. It's very genre-specific, I think. I wouldn't mind reading a mystery in first person. I can feel the immersion there. Maybe with drama as well. Not so much with a fantasy? I avoided reading the Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint for the longest time because it was written in first person, past tense though. This is still better, but I avoided it nonetheless. But I tried it after they launched their series on Webtoon. I can't stop reading it now. Exception to the rule, I guess.

[rajillustration]

It's just a preference. I prefer past tense, and it's a majority of the books I read. I feel like I get to know the author instead of just me chilling in the character's bean (and if it's a character that is really moody, flat, and annoying, there goes the whole book). That doesn't mean I'll turn away from a book in present tense, there's a lot of good works written that way. But...I think it has to be done well in order for it to feel natural and to not feel jarring (sometimes works come off as straight up silly because of the tense. Like this is a huge problem for me when I read romance in present tense, like I have just the hardest time taking it seriously, I am always chuckling when I probably shouldn't be. This is more a "me" problem than anything else. But I am extremely picky about my romances.) I like to have a little mystery in between me and this character I'm reading. I don't actually want to know their every thought.

[surenlicious]

I didn't know either, until I had a few people get a little snappy about it (just that it was present tense, they simply wouldn't give my novel a go haha) and I just couldn't figure out why it was disliked. If the story is good, you won't hear me complaining about it.

[SignedA]

For my part, I do not hate the present. The thing is, besides not having English as my mother tongue, I can't write in the present tense when it comes to telling a story, even in my own language.

[ratscout]

That's a really good question. I consider the use of tenses to be just another tool in a writer's toolbox, but I think the reason a lot of people aren't fond of it is because a lot of books for kiddos/young adults utilize it and it feels a little bit unprofessional sometimes--especially if the main character is a self-insert type. Personally, the reason why I don't often utilize present-tense is because I find it to be a very limiting tense that is also sort of hard to write in. The reason I say its limiting is because present tense often utilizes the first person in which you only get one person's point of view. Something about present-tense often feels a little bit blunt sometimes, too. Like, I'm not getting the beautiful sort of language that I enjoy from past-tense.

[mcarrowolga]

I use present tense for writing dreams and flashbacks. It's pretty common in my native language but it does irk some English speakers from time to time. I have no idea why.

[rljon]

I write screenplays first and foremost and they always must be written present tense(action & description writing at least) Same reason it would be ideal for a comic, it's a visual story happening in real-time to the viewer/reader engaging in it.