Okay, I have no excuse for having this problem (I got a 34 on both the reading and English parts of the ACT despite missing half the reading test while outside trying to de-stress), but for whatever reason, this is vexing the hell out of me.
Here's the issue: most of my game is written in present test, but when describing an ancient city (one that still exists in the story), every instinct in my body is demanding that I use the past tense to describe it and what goes on in it. For example, "[Insert city name] was a bustling metropolis, with a very large underground illegal fighting circuit. Some fought for the money, given the lucrative gambling market, but most were after the prestige of being the best."
No matter how many times I try to write that sort of description of a city in present tense, it ends up sounding stupid to me. I keep reverting to past tense descriptions. So the question for the day is this: is there ever going to be a grammatically consistent and correct situation where the story is written in the present tense, but long-standing institutions such as ancient cities are described in the past tense? I should point out that there is no mixing of tense within paragraphs or sentences.
It may just be that I'm having this problem because nearly every novels is written in the past tense. Maybe that keeps subconsciously creeping into my mind, but I am completely at a loss with this issue. Whatever the cause of my problem, thanks for any help!