Hatrack River Writers Workshop: How does one switch POV?

This is topic How does one switch POV? in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by Ezekiel (Member # 3264) on :

The past times I have submitted a fragment I always get critiqued on my POV. I like for another less important character to introduce my MC, but I seem to have a problem doing this. Is it neccesary that I completly give all the details of my POV? In Frags and Feedback my story shows a Confessor going into a dungeon to see a man that has been in iso for 40 years, that man (Thedaran) is my Mc, but the story is Thedaran confessing for his sins and tells his story (in 3rd person! I digress) Anyways, how do you sucessfully pull this off, do I really need to add a bunch of infodump for the Confessor? Any ideas???

Posted by Christine (Member # 1646) on :

It sounds like you could really use the book "Characters and Viewpoint" by OSC. He goes into great detail about this. Let me try to sum it up in my own clunky way.

There are three persons...first, second, and third.

First is when the narrator is the main character and tells the story for himself. "I did this and that."

Second is when the reader is the main character and there is an actual or implied "you." This is usually reserved for the imperative. Instruction manuals and cookbooks, for example. You may also remember the "Choose Your Own Adventure" stories, though.

Third person is when the narrator is removed from the story in some way and tells it for the characters. He/she/they/it.

Now, when you choose third person, it gets interesting. How much does your narrator know? Where are his eyes? What does he see/sense?

An omniscient narrator knows all, sees all. This is becoming less popular but can still make for an interesting story when well done. You can choose what information to tell and withhold as an omniscient narrator, but the more you make it obvious that you are withholding information the more intrusive the narrator is to the story. The more it is obvious that you are reading a story rather than experiencing it.

Third person limited omniscient means that the narrator sits in one character's head and tells the story from there. This narrator has access to all the thoughts, feelings, and senses of that one character and it is considered poor form to purposefully withhold any of that if it's important. (That isn't to say you have to infodump their head on the first page.) The advantage of third person limited omniscient is that you can make it feel like the reader is experiencing the story with the character. I find these kinds of stories particularly enjoyable to read and to write. You can always use more than one viewpoint character, but you need a chapter or at least a scene break to switch viewpoints and then you have to be completely honest with the second character's point of view.

Now, who is your point of view (POV) character in third person limited omniscient? Anyone! The idea of main character and POV character are different. You can have a sidekick or an interviewer tell the story, but when you do that you have to understand that the story teller is an important character as well and that we will be deeply entrenched in their heads. We need their emotions, thoughts, and attitudes about the story.

So if you have a confessor going in to talk to a man who has been in prison for 40 years, you can do that from the confessor's POV without problem, but let's get inside the confessor's head and find out what he thinks as he's interviewer your prisoner.

Posted by wbriggs (Member # 2267) on :

Echo Christine on OSC's book.

If you want to switch POV -- and it's unconventional in a short -- I think you should mark the change with a blank line.

Like that.

Posted by rcorporon (Member # 2879) on :

How do you switch POV? My rule: Don't. Ever.

Nothing pulls me out of a book worse than a mid-chapter POV change. Thomas Harris is very, very, very guilty of this in his early novels, but has stopped in his more recent books (thankfully.)

When I write I like to write in a third person POV, with the focus on only one character, and the information is kept within the bounds of what that character thinks/sees/knows.

Posted by Lynda (Member # 3574) on :

I don't mind POV switches as long as it's "signalled" by a line break, * * * or # or a chapter change or "Part Two: So-and-So." I read one book where each chapter had the POV person's name at the top of the chapter, because it switched POVs with every chapter. That one was a bit much, but switching POVs shouldn't be a problem as long as you don't pop into someone else's head mid-scene for one reaction, then pop back out again, with no scene break, etc.

And OSC's book is excellent. Christine did a good job of summarizing it.

Lynda

Posted by dee_boncci (Member # 2733) on :

In general I agree that it's best to use a chapter or section break. At minimum use a paragraph break, but even when accomplished writers (Larry McMurty comes to mind) do it that way, it can be aggravating/confusing to some readers (e.g., me).

I like the way George R. R. Martin does it. Each chapter in a single POV and the chapter titles bearing the name of the POV character. Absolute minimum chance for confusion.

From what you described of your story, you might consider sticking with one POV or the other.

Posted by Survivor (Member # 213) on :

Just so long as you clearly establish the POV character and use a consistent signal for the switches, I'm fine with POV shifts between scenes. I think that POV switches during a scene create serious problems of identification and continuity. Even if you don't screw up and lose track of which character's POV you're using, the reader probably will.