I was thinking about this a lot recently. I want to have my story a 3rd person POV, but should the reader see through one character's perspective or all of them? I understand that 3rd person POV is a universal thing, but I want some of these other points of views as well. I just want some feedback, that's all.
asked May 30, 2017 at 20:07
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I am not sure what you mean by the "universal thing" and "some of those other points of views"--you have to be a bit more specific. There are three universally accepted POVs: First Person, Second Person, and Third Person, and there is a vast number of resources describing the flavors of each. Also: this question writers.stackexchange.com/questions/28343/… might be or relevance.– LewMay 30, 2017 at 21:10
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*sorry, 3rd point of view omnicient– Aspen the Artist and AuthorMay 30, 2017 at 22:15
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Then you do not have to change perspective at all. Omniscient gives you a access to all you character's thoughts at any time.– LewMay 30, 2017 at 22:24
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thanks, that gives me the impression that i' m doing a good– Aspen the Artist and AuthorMay 31, 2017 at 0:05
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1Hang on, 3rd person is not necessarily omniscient. You can have 3rd person PoV limited to the world and knowledge of a single character. See Game of Thrones as an example. Each chapter is a 3rd person tale focusing on one specific PoV.– FraEnricoMay 31, 2017 at 7:07
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2 Answers
You can do either "omniscient" or "character" POV. "Omniscient" is the easiest way to tell a story. However, this way the reader is disconnected from thoughts and emotions of any character. Writing from character's perspective gives the author more tools to develop that character - but this can be also more challenging, because the character needs to look genuine. This is specifically true for "multiple POV" novels. Some characters may come out very good, while others may seem two-dimensional, despite all efforts of the author.
"Character" and "omniscient" POVs can be also combined, just try not to confuse the reader. Often, most of the story is told though the protagonist's eyes, but once in a while there is a short chapter, coming in a manner - "Meanwhile, in a faraway land..."
Techniques are always connected to the world you are writing about: if you have multiple morale conflicts, it can be a good idea to move from one PoV to another. If the conflict is more linear (i.e. a good guy vs a bad guy) or if the group of characters share the same moral vision, then you probably don't need that.
A story with a wide range of characters, such as the Song of Fire and Ice saga (i.e. GoT) moves across several PoVs who are the main characters. In that type of story, you have a complex world structure and you need to provide the world vision of each side.
Another great example is in the french fantasy novel "L'horde du contrevent" by A. Damasio: the main characters are part of the same team, and each chapter is told by the PoV of each of them, who provide a different feel and perspective to the events shared by all.
In my opinion, using alternate PoV just to change the pace of the story is not a reason strong enough. The same goes for using PoV just because the characters are geographically separated. I believe PoV is not a different knowledge of "what happens", but it's really a specific way to convey meaning.
