First Person POV advice needed

[Deleted member 68927]

Can you please give me a couple of tips? I mean, I wrote it before, but I must have done a lot of wrong because my readers drop my books.

 

[LuoirM]

Writing first person is borderline self insert, you can't sugarcoat it much. You can give the narrator (aka MC) bit more different personally but overall the things they observe first (i.e in a room full of stuff what'll they describe or focus on) and their train of thoughts reflects the author. So I don't suggest writing 1st POV if the character is immensely different from you.
Another thing is over describing something, 1st POV writers usually don't suffer from not describing enough detail about that tree and the fact that it has 166.539 leaves with 18 apples on it. But they spend way too long time on that, they don't usually do that when they write 3rd POV, and it's coming from the same author. Best choice? Look for this and keep it in mind.

Also, it's extremely, extremely hard to time skip (and stuff of that matter) when 1st POV so that's something you gotta keep an eye out.

 

[TsumiHokiro]

Without further info, can't do much more than give you generic advice, you're better searching the internet.

 

[patrick_lansing]

A good first-person narrative is usually about colouring the world with the character's ideas, viewpoints, and perspectives.

But, there is also a narrative angle to it. For example, a lot of FP-POV is confessional in nature. In fact, in Japan, there is an entire genre that was popularized in the last century called the "I-novel" (私小説, Shishōsetsu).

One of the my favourite authors in this genre is Haruki Murakami.

As far as tips: consider building the characters' relationships, ideas, being and try out writing a set scene you want, or already have a very clear picture of in your mind, and see if the voice that comes out makes sense to you.

It usually takes time. For example, just consider what this person is like while stuck in a lift with someone else. Or, what they look for when they stand in a queue for a bus. What is it that the person finds beautiful; what is ugly?

Different characters will interpret things differently. What will the character pick out to describe while describing a scene in a restaurant, versus what will they think about during a funeral?
As you figure out these things, you will understand who the character is.

 

[Kalliel]

Just remember not to describe too much, a person won't go on and on thinking about something with sophisticated words in their head, not me, at least.

And another thing, 1st person for me is essentially a train of thought mixed with dialogues and such, so try to be coherent. The thoughts have to be related to each other, the previous ones leading to the following ones.

 

[HungrySheep]

I find first-person incredibly easy to write even if the protagonist is different from me. Whenever I write in first-person, I always have a very rigid set of rules for the protagonists, and having a shounen-like protagonist helps for this sort of thing. Give them a strong fixation. It can be a goal, a desire, or anything, really.

That way, it's easy for you to decide what the protagonist's next thoughts and actions will be. Don't be afraid of keeping the tone casual either, sort of like a conversation between the protagonist and themselves as they experience the world around them.

 

[patrick_lansing]

Just remember not to describe too much, a person won't go on and on thinking about something with sophisticated words in their head, not me, at least.

And another thing, 1st person for me is essentially a train of thought mixed with dialogues and such, so try to be coherent. The thoughts have to be related to each other, the previous ones leading to the following ones.

That is a very restrictive limitation to First Person. It can be so much more.

You can essentially write stream-of-consciousness without it necessarily being 1st Person. And, generally, stream-of-consciousness doesn't have coherent thoughts. It's hardly a stream if it doesn't mimic how human thought progresses. which is of course non-linear.

 

[Kalliel]

That is a very restrictive limitation to First Person. It can be so much more.

You can essentially write stream-of-consciousness without it necessarily being 1st Person. And, generally, stream-of-consciousness doesn't have coherent thoughts. It's hardly a stream if it doesn't mimic how human thought progresses. which is of course non-linear.

I agree. We have random thoughts all the time.

But the thing is, you are trying to write for other people, and I don't think many people would appreciate all-over-the-place thoughts. If you want the character to suddenly have a random thought, just add a line indicating that.

 

[TASTYLEADPAINT]

Personally I love writing on first person. It provides a really fun problem solving challenge to writing.

 

[expentio]

In 1st person is a direct depiction of a person's thoughts. You are trying to immerse yourself in that perspective. Their own character should be displayed in their inner language and focus. You need to balance what the character would have enough interest to pay attention and go into detail about and what is important for the story to mention. Though, the unreliable narrator can be a thing.
Another important thing to keep in mind would be the knowledge of your character. If your character is in a medieval environment they wouldn't use modern words. They probably don't know concepts like psychological, car driving, or certain political developments.

 

[BlackKnightX]

There are three types in general: flashback, immediate, and epistolary.

Flashback is the most common one. It's basically a guy sitting there and telling you his story in the past. Or like when you tell your friends a funny thing that happened yesterday.

Immediate is more commonly seen in YA and some web novels and light novels. Instead of a guy telling a story of his past, this one is telling the story as it's happening. Or rather, the better word for this would be "living the story as it's happening." It's pretty artificial, as you might have guessed, but it works pretty well in terms of creating immersion and intimacy.

Epistolary. Less common but can be pretty cool when done right. This one comes in a form of a found document: diary, journal, news story, report, exchanged letters, etc. The classic Dracula is written in this style. For web novel and light novel, Re: Monster also employs this style as well.

** Oh, I should also mention the stream of consciousness style, like Kumo Desu Ga?, where it feels like we're reading the character's thoughts as opposed to their narration. But this one is more of a stylistic choice, so I didn't include it.

 

[melchi]

Without further info, can't do much more than give you generic advice, you're better searching the internet.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. What are you wanting to write in first person?

 

[LuoirM]

There are three types in general: flashback, immediate, and epistolary.

Flashback is the most common one. It's basically a guy sitting there and telling you his story in the past. Or like when you tell your friends a funny thing that happened yesterday.

Immediate is more commonly seen in YA and some web novels and light novels. Instead of a guy telling a story of his past, this one is telling the story as it's happening. Or rather, the better word for this would be "living the story as it's happening." It's pretty artificial, as you might have guessed, but it works pretty well in terms of creating immersion and intimacy.

Epistolary. Less common but can be pretty cool when done right. This one comes in a form of a found document: diary, journal, news story, report, exchanged letters, etc. The classic Dracula is written in this style. For web novel and light novel, Re: Monster also employs this style as well.

** Oh, I should also mention the stream of consciousness style, like Kumo Desu Ga?, where it feels like we're reading the character's thoughts as opposed to their narration. But this one is more like a stylistic choice, so I didn't include it.

Hey I'm writing the third type! Check out my signature uwu

 

[Empyrea]

If it's just general advice then I'd say feelings are more important than visuals. Your readers need to feel when it hurts or get comforted along with the character. No matter how you describe someone's looks or the building they're in, every reader will imagine it differently in their head. The same goes for fight scenes. The description of actions should take a back seat to the descriptions of how the wound feels or the lack of breath from overexertion. I personally think the point of POV is to immerse the reader in thoughts and feelings.

The awe a character feels towards a monolithic structure is more important than the structure itself.