[Stylist] good POV article from the Writer newsletter

[Ann Chiappetta]

From:
https://www.writermag.com/improve-your-writing/fiction/knowing-how-and-when-
to-use-multiple-pov-characters-in-a-manuscript/

 

“There is nothing insignificant in the world. It all depends on the point of
view.”

 

– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

 

What is fiction but a story with a point of view?

 

On the one hand, point of view is the lens or perspective from which the
story is told. On the other hand, it’s the person you use to tell the tale,
whether first (“I” or “we”), second (“you”), or third (“they,” “he,” “she,”
etc.) Writers seldom use the second person, so the first or the third is the
usual choice.

 

But if it’s third person, what about the omniscient? The omniscient POV was
certainly popular in 19th-century novels and, to some extent, in
20th-century ones, but it’s pretty much passé today. Instead, the
contemporary choice for third person is either limited omniscient or, if
more than one consciousness is needed, multiple points of view. But what are
the advantages of the multiple POV? 

 

Let’s consider multiple POVs as an option to the omniscient as well as to
the single POV, whether first or third. Why go multiple? 

 

For answers, we turned to several well-published authors who regularly use
multiple POVs.

 

An omniscient narrator can dip into different characters’ minds but also has
the leeway to know things beyond what any given character knows – and can
opt, at certain times, to provide authorial commentary. What can you gain by
choosing multiple points of view over authorial omniscience? 

 

According to Jessica Goodman, a New York Times bestselling author of YA
thrillers, there is a definite payoff in using multiple points of view.
Multiple perspectives are not just different windows on the world but also
different vessels of knowing. “Writing with multiple points of view allows
readers to see one scene, story, or event from different characters’
perspectives, meaning the readers may end up knowing more than the
characters themselves.”

 

The value of this? Plot-wise, she says, choosing multiple POVs can create
suspense because you’re able to “propel the story forward since the reader
wants to know when – or if! – the characters will find out what’s already
been revealed through someone else’s POV.”

 

The advantage of multiple points of view extends beyond elements of plot to
the creation of voice, says Adrianne Finlay, YA author of speculative
fiction. “The most critical advantage is that it can help shape an
understanding of the story through voice-driven narrative.” Through multiple
POVs, you’re able to “convey character and character perspective, as well as
provide the kind of vivid storytelling that voice-driven POV narratives
allow.” 

 

Advertisement

 

Also, she says, using multiple points of view can create the possibility of
different story meanings or interpretations. “While authorial commentary can
be useful and efficient, multiple points of view allow for complexities of
narrative that leave the reader thinking – multiple POVs may offer
contradictory interpretation of events and differing understandings, so the
author can explore new and varied ways to investigate the nature of story.”

 

For Ellen Meeropol, author of four novels, there are three major advantages
of multiple POVs: 

 

“Multiple points of view can add nuance and complexity to a novel.” (She
finds this especially helpful in a novel dealing with controversial issues:
“Contrasting narrator perspectives allow the writer to delve deeply into
charged material with less risk of becoming didactic or lecturing.”)

“Clashing accounts of the action, from different and diverging perspectives,
can ramp up the conflict and increase the tension in a novel.”

“Writing different perspectives helps a writer develop the internal
contradictions of their characters
This, in turn, can open up the
‘conversation’ of the novel, inviting the reader to join in, adding their
own opinions and thoughts.” If multiple points of view have certain
advantages over an authorial POV, what, if any, are the benefits of multiple
points of view over a single POV? 

 

According to Goodman, one advantage over the single POV is enhancement of
character relationships: “Having multiple POVs helps create more dynamic
relationships because you can see a bond from a 360-perspective.” In the
case of a dual POV, she says, “You get to know how both characters feel
about one another, why they’re acting the way they’re acting, and what they
think about the other person. What results is a rich relationship that leaps
off the page.”How do you determine how many points of view you will need?
What about secondary or minor characters? Can they be POV characters? 

 

A few questions may help you determine the right number of points of view,
states Goodman. Namely: “Whose POV is necessary to propel the plot forward?
Whose narration will drive this story? Whose voice is most interesting or
compelling?” Once you’ve answered these questions, says Goodman, you should
watch for answers that overlap, which will tell you which characters are
important enough to concentrate on. Tips from the pros

Jessica Goodman: “Practice writing your POV characters having a

conversation with one another. It can be something mundane, like ordering at
a diner or how they’d interact

at a cocktail party. Writing in their voices can help distinguish them from
one another.”

 

Lance Olsen: “Engaging with distinct multiple points of view is

all about engaging with distinct modes of language, asking yourself about a
character’s background, hurts, hopes, schooling, life conditions, and so on,
then asking yourself how you can express those through everything from
punctuation to word choice, sentence rhythm to

the circus of a mind in motion.”

 

Ann M. Chiappetta, M.S.

Making Meaningful ConnectionsThrough Media 

914.393.6605 USA

Anniecms64 at gmail.com <mailto:Anniecms64 at gmail.com> 

All things Annie: www.annchiappetta.com <http://www.annchiappetta.com>  

 

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