Switching perspecives - Writers Forum

Gunther409 · 07-13-2006, 03:38 AM

Hello, I'm writing a story in first person perspective but I found I really want to switch to third person when my character isn't doing anything of importance. (Or at least not doing anything climactic)

Since I'm still an inexperienced reader I'm wondering would this just piss my readers off to no end if I did this? I don't know if that is just like the worst thing I could do, or if there is a way I could do it so it wouldn't look as though I was just not paying attention, because I am fully aware of my perspectives.

Any info would be nice. I'll continue to write in one perspective for now.

Talia_Brie · 07-13-2006, 04:08 AM

It's not the worse thing you can do, but it's right up there.

Anything can be done, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it should be done. You can switch from 1st to 3rd to 2nd as oftena s you like, and if you do it really well it will be well received. But that's a pretty big 'if'. Well, actually, this is a big if:

IF

Well, that wasn't quite as funny as I thought it was going to be.

Gunther409 · 07-13-2006, 04:22 AM

Yeah you're probably right, besides I'm not experienced enough to know how to do it right. Sure would make things more convienent though. I think I'll keep it in a single perspective for now. ^_^ thanks

Mike C · 07-13-2006, 04:28 AM

If your mc isn't doing anything important, why write it? Move on. If you think it's unimportant, so will your reader.

Dawnstorm · 07-13-2006, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike C

If your mc isn't doing anything important, why write it? Move on. If you think it's unimportant, so will your reader.

Somebody else may do something important, and the narrator may not be aware that it's important.

***

Such shifts can work. If they don't, you can still improve, re-write or delete the scenes. Try it. You won't get any worthwhile experience if you don't.

If you don't act on your ideas because you're scared to mess them up, you'll never be the writer you could be (or couldn't be, but you'll never know).

mwd · 07-13-2006, 06:11 AM

It's a cool idea. I say it's a cool idea because it's what I'm doing with my novel. I switch between 3rd and 1st person POVs back and forth between chapters for most of the book, with the beginning and ending written entirely in 1st person to kind of sandwich it all together. But I actually use it as a plot device which helps explain some things that are going on, and it's established and explained before the first time that I do it ... which I guess isn't really what you're talking about.

If changing POV is actually going to be necessary to tell your story the way you want, then do it, but don't do it just because you think 1st person will be "boring" -- if you write it correctly, it won't be any more or less boring than 3rd person limited would be. And of course what Mike said is right on the money.

Mike C · 07-13-2006, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dawnstorm

Somebody else may do something important, and the narrator may not be aware that it's important.

That's something you generally have to sacrifice in first person POV, and what makes it difficult to write.

Dawnstorm · 07-13-2006, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike C

That's something you generally have to sacrifice in first person POV, and what makes it difficult to write.

I agree, and it's an important point. Supplementing first person narration with thrid person narration might weaken the writing, but not necessarily. It depends how you set the narrators against each other. It depends on what's being told.

Mixed formats exist.

Gunther409 · 07-13-2006, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike C

That's something you generally have to sacrifice in first person POV, and what makes it difficult to write.

Well, perhaps unimportant wasn't the word. More like not "epic" if he were doing something that is absolutely critical to the story it'd be in first person.

When I'm doing "character building"(not sure if thats the correct term) it's much easier to do things in the third person. Because it allows me to look into more than just the hero's minds and lets me more easily avoid beating my reader to death with "I" and "me" statements.

first person for important parts also makes it easier to build suspense because it's just him and his thoughts with no word on what the antagonist is doing. I'm keeping it simple for this piece though, I might experiment with perspectives on something I don't value as much.

Straylight · 07-13-2006, 10:37 AM

I do it all the time. Sometimes I change the voice completely, and sometimes I keep the same voice, as if the first person narrator were telling the story, even though he doesn't strictly know it's going on yet (or at all).

It's not an easy thing to pull off. It has to be done very analytically and confidently or it will just seem like (at best) a trick or (at worst) complete hackery.

I wouldn't suggest it until you've got more experience under your belt.

~SL