: Re: Are these examples of tenses? Why do writers use the tenses that they do? I have a passage about a character who has just woken up, and then there's the line The room fell into silence.

@Dunderdale623

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Yes, you're about to choose the tense of your story.

See this question about comparison of when and how to use which tense.

In short:

Past tense is the standard, something great most of stories is written in. It feels most natural - this is how you tell stories from your own past after all.

Present tense introduces the sense of immediacy, rapid flow of events, things changing at startling pace. It works well for action scenes, and fast-paced short stories but it wears off rather quickly, as soon as the action winds down, and begins to feel awkward.

There are a few more exceptions but they are pretty marginal comparing to the bulk.

Picking the past tense for your writing is the safe choice. There is no situation when it would be wrong. Present tense can "liven up" your action but it's easy to overdo it. Also, hectic mixing of tenses is the common newbie writer's mistake. Stick to one tense until you've mastered switching tenses smoothly - it's possible but tricky to do in a way that won't be jarring to the reader.

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