Past tense and present perfect sentences

[Bottema]

Hello,

I'm a Dutch person trying to write some English prose and I'm constantly being bogged down with contemplation on how sentences look in past tense or present perfect.

Here's a specific example to illustrate my current problem, in two different ways:

"He knew where to go and when he was there it is not like he needs to search around."

or:

"He knew where to go and when he was there it was not like he needed to search around."

Aside from word use like 'like' versus 'as if', how should I deal with this specific sentence and what guideline should a remember for the future? My feeling says the first variant isn't even valid.

Maybe there is a generally known method where past tense and present perfect are combined to provide a more interesting read? For example, I know something like this is entirely normal:

I put the mug down while avoiding the spill and looked him in the eyes, "Alright, I think we have a deal."

But I know this only by example from books I have. Is there some place or guide that deals with this specific type of problem when writing?

Thank you very much for any tips or references.

[Alan]

Hi Bottema,

I am sure that you know that there is a versatility in English tenses that enables a writer/speaker to switch from one tense to another. The main point is whether the choices of a particular tense past or perfect or present can be both explained and justified

In your sentence:

[Bottema]

Thank you for your answer.

The versatility in English and combining tenses as you mention is exactly the topic that I'd like a primer for.

I was hoping my question would be recognized as a more general problem writers/speakers encounter, something like "tenses for budding writers" rather than "tenses for beginners". I generally recognize tenses, but I'm unsure what style engages the reader and when to choose for tense past, perfect or present and combinations thereof.

As you stated, "The main point is whether the choices of a particular tense past or perfect or present can be both explained and justified".

[Alan]

Hi,

Why not show some text that you have written where you are unsure of the right choice of tense for the reader.

Alan
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English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Progressive Forms

[Pytilovsky]

Hi!
The question about tenses is exactly what I often wonder about. I sometimes write fics in English too, and have faced the same problem for quite a number of times. It is mostly about mixed conditionals, reported speech, and perfect.

I would be thankful for a simple outline of the mixed conditionals use.

And I guess I have very many examples of such problematic narratives)) And can dwell long on the topic))

It was a sound idea to talk about engaging writing.

Regards,
Sveta, Ukraine