Are You Writing in the POV You Think You’re Writing In?
By Marcy Kennedy (@MarcyKennedy)
Point of view problems are the most common problems I see as a freelance editor. And I’m not surprised. Point of view is a difficult concept to master, yet it’s also the most essential. (Check out Janice Hardy’s post on 4 Tips to Solve 99% of Your Writing Problems. It’s all about POV.)
So I’m kicking off a new series that I hope will help you understand your point of view options better, choose the right POV for your story, and get it right when you do.
What Is POV?
When we talk about POV, we basically mean the point of view from which the story is told. Who are you listening to? Whose head are you in? In a practical sense, POV lays the foundation for everything you’ll write in your story, and it comes in four types.
Second Person
Second person POV tells the story using you.
You dig through your purse, but can’t find your keys. They were there yesterday. You’re sure of it. You tip your purse’s contents out onto the table, and receipts, old gum wrappers, and pennies spill everywhere.
The “Choose Your Own Adventure” books that were popular when I was a kid used second person POV.
You’d be able to self-publish a book written in second person, but you probably wouldn’t be able to sell it to a traditional publisher. For an example of one of the few successful second person books, try to find a copy of Jay McInerney’s Bright Lights, Big City.
Omniscient POV
Omniscient POV is when the story is told by an all-knowing narrator. That all-knowing narrator is the author, and the story is told in his or her voice rather than in any particular character’s voice.
This is easily confused with head-hopping. Head-hopping and omniscient POV are not the same thing. I’ll cover both in more detail in an upcoming post.
For an excellent example of how to write omniscient POV well, check out Rachel Aaron’s The Spirit Thief.
Third Person POV
In third person, a scene, chapter, or sometimes, even the whole book is told from the perspective of a single character, but it uses he/she.
Melanie dug through her purse. No keys. They were here yesterday. She’d dropped them in when she came home from work. Hadn’t she? She tipped her purse’s contents out onto the table, and receipts, old gum wrappers, and pennies spilled everywhere.
Everything is filtered through the eyes of the viewpoint character, and we hear their voice. You can have multiple third person POV characters per book as long as you don’t hop between them in a single scene. If you give the flavor of a particular character’s voice, and switch POVs mid-scene without a proper transition, you’re head-hopping.
Even though you can have multiple POV characters, try to write your book with the smallest possible number. (Few of us are writing something like George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones.)
First Person POV
Just like it sounds, in first person, the character is telling us the story directly.
I dug through my purse. No keys. They were here yesterday. I’d dropped them in when I came home from work, didn’t I? I tipped my purse’s contents out onto the table, and receipts, old gum wrappers, and pennies spilled everywhere.
Most of the time, when you use first person POV, you’ll only use that single POV throughout the book (like in The Hunger Games). However, that’s not a rule. Authors have successfully used more than one first person POV in the same book. I just wouldn’t recommend it for new writers because it’s difficult to do well.
For examples of how to write first person POV well, read Kathryn Stockett’s The Help (multiple first person POVs) or Janice Hardy’s The Shifter
(a single first person POV).
I’ll dig into each type of POV (except for second person) in future posts, but after this overview, hopefully we’re all working from the same foundation.
What POV are you writing in? What you’re biggest struggle with POV? I’m happy to take requests for future posts!
I hope you’ll check out the newly released mini-books in my Busy Writer’s Guides series–Strong Female Characters and How to Write Faster–both currently available for 99 cents.
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Oct 09, 2013 @ 10:46:14
Thanks for the post! I’ve been a little curious about this lately based on what a critique partner told me about my work. I’m writing in 1st person POV, and in my teen characters’s inner monologues there are times when she asks herself a question or just thinkgs in the ‘you’ format, which sounds more casual than using the ‘one’ format. For example:
“Geez, you’d think my mom would get it by now.” vs. “Geez, one would think my mom would get it by now.”
My critique partner says I’ve lapsed into 2nd person POV, and he’s probably right. He suggested I use “one” instead of “you”. It would never work with her voice, so I’ve opted to just rewrite those sentences, but to me it *sounds* more natural.
What do you think?
Oct 09, 2013 @ 11:22:27
Actually, in that situation, you’re right to use “you.” It doesn’t make it second person POV because you’re in an inner monologue with a first person narrator. In other words, the right way to write it is however she would naturally think to herself, “Geez, you’d think so-and-so would get it by now.” Most of us use the “you” even when we’re only thinking to ourselves.
When we talk about POV, we’re talking about non-dialogue elements and inner monologue/internal dialogue falls under dialogue rules for this one.
Oct 09, 2013 @ 14:14:47
I suspect I’m jumping around between omniscient, third person and head-hopping. I’m tempted to keep going and fix the POV in revision.
Oct 09, 2013 @ 14:20:56
I would agree with you about pushing forward and fixing it in revisions. If the story is moving along well, you don’t want to stall out in order to go back and edit. However, what you can do is learn about POV along the way and try to make each chapter more consistent than the last. That way, when you do go back to fix the earlier chapters, it’ll be much easier.
Oct 09, 2013 @ 19:45:41
POV is one of my biggest issues when writing. I naturally write in omniscient, but I’ve been told I’m a head hopper, so now I force myself to write in third person. Of course when I’m really on a writing high I’m not paying attention, so I constantly have to look for it while editing (and even then I don’t catch it all).
I’m looking forward to the series!
Oct 11, 2013 @ 14:44:39
POV is such a tricky concept that I think everyone slips up when they’re doing their first draft (I know I do). When you get in the flow, you’re not always thinking about craft. But all that is easy to fix in an edit 🙂
Oct 09, 2013 @ 20:00:49
You know I’m looking forward to this series! (although I’m a lot better than I was)
Oct 11, 2013 @ 14:45:06
I’m looking forward to seeing this next book, and I hope this series helps you even more!
Oct 10, 2013 @ 05:13:59
Great post Marcy! This is going to be a great series. Of course you already know I am working on close third person POV. Unfortunately, not much writing is happening here. I picked up Strep throat and it’s kicked my butt girl. I really can’t believe it. But once I’m on my feet, it’s back to the WIP. I hope you’ll see some improvement.
Oct 11, 2013 @ 14:40:58
Oh no! I hope you feel better soon. I’m sure I will see improvement when you send me the next piece of your book 🙂
Oct 10, 2013 @ 18:29:08
I’m writing in first person, present tense. I’d really love some thoughts on if this is ok. I’m inside the head of a bratty girl in 14th century Entland.
Oct 11, 2013 @ 14:40:13
Either past tense or present tense would be fine for a first person POV. I personally like present tense if you’re also writing in first person. It gives a real sense of immediacy that no other combination can give.
Oct 11, 2013 @ 16:58:55
Hi Marcy,
Thanks for the shout out to Janice’s guest post on my blog! 🙂
I’m looking forward to this series too. I’m always on the lookout for good sources I can point people to when they have questions. 🙂
Writing Resources 12 October 2013 | Gene Lempp ~ Writer
Oct 12, 2013 @ 15:53:41
[…] Kennedy: Are You Writing in the POV You Think You’re Writing In? “Point of view problems are the most common problems I see as a freelance editor. And I’m […]
Oct 12, 2013 @ 16:26:21
I cannot wait to see the post on head-hopping and omniscient POV not being the same thing. My books have been rejected by publishers for this very reason and it has confused the heck out of me. I have many 4 & 5 star ratings on my books so it seems readers don’t notice POV as long as they love the characters and the story line keeps them pulled in.
How to Successfully Write Omniscient POV - Marcy Kennedy
Oct 16, 2013 @ 06:50:53
[…] In case you’re not sure what I’m talking about, omniscient POV is when the story is told by an all-knowing narrator. That all-knowing narrator is the author, and the story is told in his or her voice rather than in any particular character’s voice. (For more on point of view, click here.) […]