Using "now" in a narrative.

"Three months after his father’s death, Dave was now running the shop."

Is the use of "now" correct there, IYO?

Sounds fine to me.

I would use "is now..."

There's no need to use "is" instead of 'was". Stories don't have to be told in present tense.

Ye "is now..." also works. I think 'is now..." is more if you want it to be completely in the present. Wheras "was now..." is more if you are, lets say, telling a story and you want to change what the present time of the story is. Say you had been talking about Dave's father's funeral and then you want to jump to three months after the funeral. Kind of like a narrative in a play or a TV programme (like Little Britain).

I think it works well and puts distance between the narrator and reader. There is the writer's "Now" (the "present" in the narrative) and the reader's "Now" (whenever he/she picks up the book). Creating distance is quite useful in stories. I like the use of "was" there.

<<Is the use of "now" correct there, IYO?>>

Yes, I think that use of "now" is fine. In past-tense narration, "now" basically means "at this point" or "by this point".

<<Yes, I think that use of "now" is fine. In past-tense narration, "now" basically means "at this point" or "by this point". >>

Spot on, Lazar.