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Davidbush Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Can I use -ing verbs in the past tense
This is a bullet item on my resume, which I am in the process of rewriting:
"Developed press releases that generated media attention by writing newsworthy copy, assembling media distribution lists and following up with journalists.
My questions is do I have to change all of those -ing words to -ed words in order for everything to be in the same tense? Ie:
"Developed press releases that generated media attention, wrote newsworthy copy, assembled media distribution lists and followed up with journalists."
What I like about the first version is that the beginning stands out as the main idea "Developed press releases that generated media attention" with the rest of the phrases supporting that claim. Is it wrong, have I mixed the past and present tense together in the first example? And if so will that disrupt the space-time continuum?
(fyi yes, I do see the irony in seeking grammatical advice for a sentence that touts my writing ability but that is another issue.)
"Developed press releases that generated media attention by writing newsworthy copy, assembling media distribution lists and following up with journalists.
My questions is do I have to change all of those -ing words to -ed words in order for everything to be in the same tense? Ie:
"Developed press releases that generated media attention, wrote newsworthy copy, assembled media distribution lists and followed up with journalists."
What I like about the first version is that the beginning stands out as the main idea "Developed press releases that generated media attention" with the rest of the phrases supporting that claim. Is it wrong, have I mixed the past and present tense together in the first example? And if so will that disrupt the space-time continuum?
(fyi yes, I do see the irony in seeking grammatical advice for a sentence that touts my writing ability but that is another issue.)
Top answer
davidbush "Developed press releases that generated media attention by writing newsworthy copy, assembling media distribution lists and following up with journalists. The gerunds are fine. I have a problem with what seems like a misplaced modifier.
- davidbush "Developed press releases that generated media attention by writing newsworthy copy, assembling media distribution lists and following up with journalists.
- The gerunds are fine.
- I have a problem with what seems like a misplaced modifier.
- You seem to suggest that it is not you , but the press releases which are writing, assembling, and following up.
- The gerunds are too far away.
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4 Answers
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davidbush"Developed press releases that generated media attention by writing newsworthy copy, assembling media distribution lists and following up with journalists.The gerunds are fine.
I have a problem with what seems like a misplaced modifier.
You seem to suggest that it is not you, but the press releases which are w
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davidbushwill that disrupt the space-time continuum?Fortunately for all of us, the situation is not that serious. You can't have an -ed as the object of a preposition (by), so the -ing's are fine - necessary, in fact.
by writing ...,
(by) assembling ...,
and
(by) following up ...
An -ing word
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Ah yes, it's always the misplaced modifiers that make things confusing. If only the press releases would do the writing, assembling and following up, my job would be easier. I will tackle this again tomorrow morning with your excellent feedback in mind.
Thanks so much for your response!
-Dave
Thanks so much for your response!
-Dave
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I'm working on my resume right now and googled "can I use ING in the past tense", and found this. David, thank you for asking, and everyone else, thanks for answering! Just what I needed to hear.
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