What tense to use

[vladz]

What tense do i have to use when I am telling stories, present or past?When do I use the progressive and perfect tenses?
Please send me a guide in how to use the verb tenses properly.
Thanks

[dduck]

What tense do i have to use when I am telling stories, present or past?When do I use the progressive and perfect tenses?
Please send me a guide in how to use the verb tenses properly.
Thanks

Depends on what style you want to use. I recently read "The Green Mile" by Steven King (in Spanish). The book is written in two time periods, the 30s and 80s, so he skips between the present tense and the past tense as the stories progress.

Iain

[RonBee]

Hey, guys! Thanks for an interesting question and an informative response. :) And welcome to the forum. :D

Vladz, if you would like to post a writing sample I would be able to comment on it. That would be easier for me than speaking in generalities.

:D

8)

[Lib]

dduck - did you like the green mile? Have you seen the film?

[dduck]

dduck - did you like the green mile? Have you seen the film?

Yeah, I liked the film a lot. I saw the film a while before I read the book, which is quite shocking in places.

Iain

[Lib]

The book shocked you? I found it a little repetitive, considering it was originally written in installments, he did tend to repeat himself. I loved the film though.

[al125106]

In general, when you telling a story, you would sometimes uses direct and indirect speech. Therefore, it would depends on the situation or event in the story. If the event was in the past, then you might have to use past tense. If the event is on going, then you ought to use present continuous tense, and so forth. But... in story telling, people would not worry so much on the grammer because the worriness can interupt the flow of the story.

[dduck]

The book shocked you? I found it a little repetitive, considering it was originally written in installments, he did tend to repeat himself. I loved the film though.

Yeah, you're right. Maybe the book could have used a little editing before being published as a complete work. However, as I mentioned before I was reading the book in Spanish, as reading practice - so I actually appreciated the repetition. :)

Iain

[Lib]

Funnily enough, it's one of the few books I have read in Spanish ...

[Tdol]

What tense do i have to use when I am telling stories, present or past?When do I use the progressive and perfect tenses?
Please send me a guide in how to use the verb tenses properly.
Thanks

Progressive tenses are used in narrative to describe the background and the past is used for the events. Present tense narratives are fine, but usually the past is used. The present is often used when telling a story orally. :D