Everyday Canvas

My Take on POV ---and Tense Preference

Prompt: Yes, I was reading again, another blog I follow. What is point of view? How do you find that perfect voice in your story? Do you agree with how the author explained it? Do you prefer a particular tense when writing?
http://warriorwriters.wordpress.com/2014/11/06

Point of view or POV shows the speaker who tells the story. It also determines the angle and perception of the unfolding events. For me, it is the most important element of fiction writing since it has a close connection to characterization, style, and theme.

The blog piece mentioned is repeating in a nutshell what is taught in Creative Writing classes and writing-advice books. I especially like its author’s camera metaphor in explaining the different POVs, as I believe what she says is correct, and it may be advisable for newbie writers to keep a copy of this blog piece in their files. What I especially commiserated with is its writer’s dislike toward head-hopping.

Head-hopping annoys me greatly, too, especially in romance novels. Granted, the male and the female lead together are considered to be the protagonist as if one person; however, this doesn’t mean the author should take turns going into their heads back and forth within the same scene and even within the same paragraph. Yet, it is done, and to my horror, even the established publishing houses have such novels in the market.

Another thing that I find disturbing is the preconceived ideas of some readers, other writers, and some English teachers who may say, “I won’t ever read a novel written in first person POV” or “Third person POV doesn’t give enough psychological insight into a character’s personality.”

I believe any or all POVs can be used according to the story and through the pen of a capable writer. To find the POV that would tell the story the best way possible, it helps to write several copies of a scene in the story as it is told through different POVs, .

Even second person POV, the least used one, has its place, especially in poetry and in speeches and letters. To second person POV's favor, during the nineteenth century when the omniscient POV was the norm, one author used the second person POV very effectively. He was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle of the Sherlock Holmes series. In the denouement of each case, Holmes explains his findings to Watson—who also represents the reader—in second person. Should any other POV be used, the suspense would be diminished, and should the third point omniscient be used, the reader's involvement, through the proxy of Watson, would be taken out of the story.

The rule of thumb for me in longer works such as novellas or novels is the same POV throughout or, if third person shifting is used, the same POV within a scene and shifting to be done only for the most important characters. A different POV for each chapter can also be used, depending on the nature of the story; in this case, however, writing the name of the character at the beginning of the chapter to indicate who is speaking can help the readers’ comprehension. After all, the story is the thing and who tells it makes a huge difference.

Second question: Tense

I guess any tense is fine, if used correctly. My preference is the past or present tense when I write fiction. What bothers me with the usage of tense is switching tenses in the middle of a narration. Sometimes this is unavoidable, but usually a better author will stick to the same tense throughout.