I decided to read one of my Kindle books I "bought" a few months ago (free with Amazon Prime) because it looked interesting. But the author has a habit of using past tense for what's happening in the present. Is the following bad writing, or is my brain just scrambled? I'm really having trouble focusing on the story because this keeps pulling me out of it.
Here's a short passage... (near the beginning of Chapter One - my "corrections" in parentheses.)
Quote:
“Kathy. Hi, Moira.” Sarah kept (keeps) her voice low, not wanting to wake her father, whose hospital bed was (is) in the dining room.
(Small Correction: This free book came from Barnes & Noble. I used it when testing the Windows 10 solution for liberating Nook eBooks. I ran into again when testing my Windows 10 virtual machine on Mac. Apparently it's also free on Amazon (first in a series).)
(Small correction: the book came from Barnes & Noble, I had downloaded it when I first tested the Windows 10 way to liberate Nook books. I ran into again when I was testing this when using the Nook in a Windows 10 virtual machine under Mac OS. That said, the book is available free on Amazon as well.)
“Hi, Aunt Tharah,” Moira lisped (lisps). “I lotht my two front teeth, thee?” The little girl stuck (sticks) her tongue out through the gap where the teeth had been.
Sarah smiled (smiles). “I see that.”
Eliza took (takes) Sarah’s purse and coat. Catching her hand, she urged (urges) Sarah toward the dining room. “You need to prepare yourself before he wakes up. It’ll be easier for you both that way.”
From the couch came (comes) a quiet snort. “The rest of us have been preparing for this for months, Mama. Sure must be nice not to have had to worry about cleaning up messes and keeping vigil over a sickbed. But I guess I ain’t thinking straight. School’s more important than family, I hear.”
“Kathleen, that’s enough,” Eliza said (says). “I warned you about taking an attitude.”
With a seething glare in Sarah’s direction, Kathy stood (stands). Sarah saw (sees) that her sister was (is) pregnant again, several months gone. “I need some air. Moira, stay right here.”
“Yeth, Mommy,” Moira said (says), seemingly oblivious to the undercurrents in the room.
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I don't think I'm going to be able read this book because of this. This author is (apparently) fairly well known. Is this kind of writing common now?