Verb Tense

For Essays: Always use Past Tense!

In creative writing, you have a choice between past and present. Future is difficult. It's wierd and hardly works.
For present, there is a sense of urgency. You need to be reading what is happening to me right this second because it is very important and happening right now.
Most writers just stick to the past because it is easier to play off and makes it more timeless. I mean, if someone picked up your work in a thousand years and it was in present, then people might not truly get it. For me, it's all about sticking to the past.

BUT! Most importantly, whatever tense you pick, stick to that tense. If you do use past, though, make sure that in dialogue, you use present tense because we always speak presently when we are talking in the now.