Hatrack River Writers Workshop: Cloverfield POV

This is topic Cloverfield POV in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by shimiqua (Member # 7760) on :

So I saw cloverfield the other day, and I thought it was interesting that the story is only told by the hero at the begining and very end, the rest is told from the funny sidekicks POV.

I think it made the hero much stronger and totally worked for the story.

in my novel, i tell the story from the antagonist point of view, but I find my self liking her better than the hero.

What are your opinions on PoV, and sense Im new at this, what are the rules regarding POV, so I can know when Im breaking them.

for instance, if Cloverfield was told from the monsters point of view the story would be very different.

Posted by TaleSpinner (Member # 5638) on :

POV is a big topic. There's a chapter or more on POV in most books about writing fiction--have you tried your local bookstore or library?

Also, if you search Hatrack for "pov antagonist" several discussions have involved the terms, for example

http://www.hatrack.com/forums/writers/forum/Forum1/HTML/000581.html

Speaking for myself, as a reader I like to identify with the POV character if there is one.

quote:

I tell the story from the antagonist point of view, but I find my self liking her better than the hero.

A writerly kind of Stockholm Syndrome?

Hope this helps,
Pat

Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :

One of the reasons for keeping the point of view away from the protagonist is that it makes the protagonist a bit larger than life.

Consider the Sherlock Holmes stories. If we were in Holmes' point of view all the time, the "reveal" wouldn't be quite as surprising. Staying in Watson's point of view allows the reader to watch Holmes in action and enjoy trying to second guess him.

I would recommend staying out of the protagonist's point of view any time you want to avoid having to show the reader what the protagonist is thinking. Sidekicks are wonderful tools to use to show what's happening without revealing the deeper aspects until just the right moment.