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Choosing the right verb tense is an important aspect of powerful writing. Inconsistent tenses are a common problem. Learn how to think in the right tense as you are writing, and it will help you be consistent. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, there are basically six verb tenses. The best way to understand how to be use each tense consistently is to show the tense in action. Simple Present Tense This is the verb tense you use when you want to show action happening right now. For example, I'll use this tense when I want my reader to feel like he or she is watching the action unfolding. "I step out onto the porch. The sun makes my eyes water, but I do not care. After days of rain, I relish the rays." Notice every verb shows action happening now, in the present. Present Perfect Tense I didn't major in English, so I don't know why the word "perfect" is used, but somehow adding what English teachers call "auxiliary" verbs make an action verb "perfect." You'll recognize these auxiliary verbs as forms of common verbs we used every day-variations of the "to be" verb such as is, are, was, were, be, being, been; can and may; do; shall, should; will, would; has, have, had. I actually slipped a present perfect verb tense into my previous example. "I do not care." The present perfect tense is the tense you use when you want to show that something is still taking place, even though is started at some time in the past. "I have stepped onto the porch. The sun is making my eyes water." Simple Past With the past tense, you show action that happened in the past. It's quite common to add "ed" at the end of the action verb to accomplish this. "I stepped onto the porch. The sun made my eyes water, but I didn't care." Past Perfect Why do you need to make the past tense verb perfect? You use past perfect to show that something in the past led to another action. "I had stepped onto the porch. The sun had made my eyes water, but I had not cared." You are expecting me to add something explaining why I had not cared aren't you? You can also use past perfect to indicate that something was finished when the next piece of action takes place. "I had stepped on the porch when the sun made my eyes water." This suggests I had stepped on the porch when the sun made my eyes water. (I avoid writing in this way, as it still leaves room for wondering why my eyes were watering.) Future You use future tense when you want show that something hasn't happened yet, but you expect it to. "I will step on my porch. The sun will make my eyes water, but I will not care." Future Perfect This is the most awkward verb tense as far as I am concerned. It rarely has a place in powerful writing. "I will have stepped on my porch. The sun will have made my eyes water, but I will not have cared." The tense exists because we sometimes need it. For example, "I will have stepped onto my porch 30 times by the end of the month" shows that I expected that action to be completed at a specific time in the future. I've drawn some conclusions regarding that action. All that probably hasn't helped you as much as you would like. Here are some additional writing tips. As you are writing, keep whether you are in the past, present or future clearly in mind. Never switch from past to present, present to future, future to present, present to past or future to past in the same paragraph. Even better, stick with one tense consistently throughout your entire article, essay, chapter, etc. It requires real talent to switch verb tenses within an article or essay. If you do switch verb tense between paragraphs, stick with the new verb tense. Flopping back and forth is inconsistent. Being consistent with your tenses is important to developing a powerful writing style. Master it, and you will be able (future perfect) to deliver written messages with more power. thesis writing service
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