Maintaining Point of View Integrity
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- jerrib
- razzmusen
- AnneWatkins
- Marella
- Laura_Elvin
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» razzmusen - Hi Laura
No longer a POV nazi, eh? ;-) Inappropriate switches will definitely bring a critiquer (and no doubt an editor) out of a story fast. The casual reader too. And I suspect it does mark a writer as an amateur. It's hard enough not looking like an amateur when you're not a pro yet--anything we can do to present our work (and ourselves) more professionally we certainly should. Your articles are great at helping us avoid beginnerisms. I hadn't noticed that Clive does that switchy POV thing but now I'll be looking for it! And speaking of CB, have you read "The Essential Clive Barker"? I just started it and have no idea what I'm in for but so far, even the prologue is good. Kind of an insight into the mind of the artist at work Looking forward to your next one, Donna
-- posted by razzmusen
» AnneWatkins - Great piece!
Every writer needs to be aware of POV. Thanks for the article...well written and informative!-- posted by AnneWatkins
» Marella - POV in short fiction
Short stories are generally too short to maintain more than one point of view. With a novel, a writer can get away with more, but even so, you must always be careful not to confuse the reader (especially the most important reader - the editor). I know that some authors routinely switch POVs around between many characters, and do it well (Guy Gavriel Kay's FIONAVAR triology comes to mind), but if you write well enough to break the rules, it just means you knew the rules well enough to begin with.But on a short story, the best rule on multiple points of view is "just say no."
-- posted by Marella
» Laura_Elvin - Thanks everyone!
Thanks for the feedback on my articles here. It makes a difference.Donna, no. I have The Essential Barker, but I've yet to read it. Currently I'm having a go at The Great and Secret Show, but I feel I'm barely making a dent. Argh!
Laura
-- posted by Laura_Elvin
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