 Mystery: August 26, 2020 Issue [#10338] |
This week: It’s all a matter of perspective Edited by: Arakun the twisted raccoon  
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Quote for the week: "It's useful to go out of this world and see it from the perspective of another one."
~Terry Pratchett |
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Perspective, or point of view, is the type of narration used to tell a story. Perspective is important in mystery stories because the narration gives clues as well as just presenting the events of the story. Four basic perspectives are used in fiction:
First person: The narrator is a character in the story and uses the pronoun I. The reader only knows what the narrator knows and the story is filtered through the narrator's biases. Imagine that the main character is holding a video camera, and the readers only see and hear the events the character chooses to record. The first person narrator does not necessarily need to be the main focus of all the action, but needs to be someone who was there. First person narration can be written in an informal style, using a voice appropriate for the narrator. For example, if your narrator is a child, the entire narration should use the child's grammar and word choice. Some writers make the mistake of switching to an impersonal narrator voice outside of actual dialogue as they would with a third person narration.
Second person: The narrator is outside the story and tells it as if it happened to the reader. The reader is addressed as you throughout the narrative. Occasionally the "you" character is not intended to be the actual reader, but the story is still presented as if the reader is the character in the story. It might start out by giving the character's name and basic information such as, "Your name is Joe Smith. You are 35 years old." I once read a story with each chapter written as a second person account from a different character. Second person narrative is used less often than the other perspective types because it can sound clumsy and awkward, but it can be effective with the right story.
Third person limited: The narrator is outside the story but focuses on one main character. Pronouns such as he, she, them, and they are used. The camera records the actions of several characters but only records the thoughts and feelings of the main character. Even though a third person limited narrative is focused on one person, it feels less personal than a first person narrative. A third person limited narrator can make comments about the main character that might sound conceited or awkward if coming from first person narrator describing themselves. For example, a third person narrator might say, "Mary didn't know she was beautiful" but Mary, as a first person narrator could not say that about herself.
Third person omniscient: The narrator is outside the story and focuses on more than one character. The same pronouns are used as in third person limited, but the narrator can convey the thoughts and feelings of more than one character. The camera is "zoomed out" and takes a wider perspective on the story, but can zoom in on different characters when necessary. In a mystery story, the narrator can even get into the mind of the villain if necessary, as long as it is done in a way that does not make the identity of that character too obvious before the author intends to reveal it. Omniscient narrations can be effective because the reader is allowed to see the thoughts and feelings of all the important characters, but too much "head hopping" can cause confusion. In order to avoid confusion, some authors will present alternate chapters or scenes in the minds of different characters instead of switching point of view in the middle of a scene or chapter.
If you have a story that doesn't seem to be working, try changing the perspective. For example, some shorter stories feel too noisy in third person omniscient, while others with a large cast of characters and complicated plot might work better if you can see the thoughts of more than one character. If the person providing the narration cannot be in every scene, the story will not work well in first person.
Something to try: Take one of your mystery stories and change the perspective.
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