Perspective

Why not try something risky? You're giving the two following options- First person past tense- [i]I slapped the clip home. It cleared my head.[/i] First person present tense - [i]I slap the clip home. It clears my head.[/i] If I had to choose one of these two, I'd prefer the present tense. The act of discovery is more visceral when new things are happening simultaneously to both the character and reader. Unfortunately it is very difficult to write this way because the writer can only write what the character can see, feel, taste, smell, hear and think. Not much room for reflection in first person present. Now, about that risk. Try telling the story in second person present tense! OMGNO Yes! Example: [i]You slap the clip home. It clears your head.[/i] This tense isn't used much. However, it has its place. Have you ever read a choose your own adventure book? Yup, they use second person present tense. BUNGIE used second person with their viral campaign for Destiny a while back, but I think it was a mix of present and past tense. The one great advantage of this type of storytelling is that it begs the question "Who's telling the story?" Btw, my example for the tenses is from Halo: First Strike, when Fred is stuck in the tunnel starting to trip out on Forerunner science. Eric Nylund is the [i]man[/i].