Multiple POV's

[CupcakeNinja]

For multiple POVs, I'd go for 3rd person. It's much more flexible and cleaner, I think, than if you'd do it with multiple 1st person POVs. That doesn't mean 1st person POVs can't be done well: look at The Woman in White or The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins or Dracula by Bram Stoker or The Door of the Unreal by Gerald Biss or The Beetle by Richard Marsh for great examples. These are ostensibly mystery/gothic stories that adopt an epistolary format for multiple 1st person POVs, you get my drift. But I'd go for multiple 3rd person POVs, b/c it's much less of a headache reading than multiple 1st person POVs, b/c multiple 1st person POVs tend to sound the same, unless you're really good at character voice.

The character is a good point. For example, you gotta understand the differences between characters. They have their own opinions on things, their own ways of thinking and talking.

If I cant tell the difference between characters when the POV shifts, you didnt do it well. You cant really give an unrepentant womanizer with a chip on his shoulder the same tone and feel of some optimistic, straight-laced family man, know what I mean?

I mean cuz yeah, some writers have very bland writing styles, so all the character read the same apart from maybe their dialogue. That's bad. Especially in multiple first person perspectives.

 

[SuperHeiyan]

@CupcakeNinja @SuperHeiyan
Perhaps not the best example, but do you guys know of the Overlord LN? The MC is well, Momonga, the Overlord himself, but perhaps 1/3 if not less of the story actually happens from his POV. To me, thats very similar to GOT so thats the kind of vibe I'm going for

Overlord is really not very fitting example to compare with Martin's books but on other case the purpose of that story is subvert expectation of characters subverting and so it's centred around characters who are evil and will stay evil as well as good heroes turning up as useless. Pretty much dark fantasy angst-y story except the readers aren't expected being involved in the surviving of the cast... At least that's how it was in early tomes until story become money making machine and author basically whored characters to the other franchises to use.

If I remember right then Martin claimed that he emulated Reneissance era romances about intrigues. But in my opinion he ended up with something rather close to Romance of The Three Kingdoms, which was written in the XIV century. Only, you know, more sex and dragons.

 

[CypherTails]

What I did for my story was a hybrid style. I experimented with a full third person with many characters and a primarily solo first person and what I found is both styles have significant strengths and weaknesses for my writing style.

First-person allows for more internal monologue and much more character exploration (At least it feels more natural on the page to me) The problem with this is that POV switching can feel confusing unless clearly denoted. Also, this writing style seems to be wordier. So I feel this style is best for a single main character.

Third-person is easier on the POV switching since you need to refer to the character in the third person so it's easier to ground the reader's perspective. The problem with this is that it's harder to do an internal monologue and character development in my opinion. The benefit is that it's less wordy.

So for the story, I wrote I used the first person for the main character, and when I switch POVs to a side character I switch to the third person. That way the reader instantly knows there is a perspective switch. So the general idea for my story is the main overarching arc of the main character with mini-arcs from side characters supporting the MC. I go for a 70/30 ratio of coverage for the story, with most of the attention on the MC. I went with this style because I don't like the POV label, I find it unimmersive personally so I used both and played to both styles strengths.

The problem with this is that you need to be about equally good in both styles which isn't easy for me to do (at least initially). I think a good path forward is first to determine what the roles of the characters are. If you use a major-minor plan like mine than you can try my style but if it's an even spread I suggest a third person POV. You can dodge the POV labels by just naming the character at the start of the switch.

Anw this is my two cents, hope it helps!

 

[greyblob]

I suppose Parallel would best describe my thing, each POV having their own agenda and arc's though they will intersect occasionally and clash. I also intend to kill two-thirds of the cast.

Definitely third. I haven't read GOT or The Wheel of Time, but The First Law did something close to what you're describing. It had three main characters, and kept switching between them throughout, with each character having their own journey. The thing is, each one of the three was equal in importance - the book was divided between them. They would clash and overlap sometimes, but each was independent from one another. I'm not sure how that would work in your case, though. Besides the obvious challenges, you'll have to keep every character interesting enough to follow - especially the minor ones. I remember my hands itching to flip the pages and get to the character I liked the most.
Also, If you have a single main character you could consider a mix of first and third; first for the MC and third for every other character.

 

[SuperHeiyan]

Also, If you have a single main character you could consider a mix of first and third; first for the MC and third for every other character.

I disagree. 3rd person supposed to be omnipotent. 1rd person is not, it's more the case of "unrelliable narrator" and this is helpful if you don't wan't to give readers undue hints or want to give them wrong ones. Technically there is no such thing as a "character written in third person", merely outside view on the character.

 

[greyblob]

I disagree. 3rd person supposed to be omnipotent. 1rd person is not, it's more the case of "unrelliable narrator" and this is helpful if you don't wan't to give readers undue hints or want to give them wrong ones. Technically there is no such thing as a "character written in third person", merely outside view on the character.

Why should third be omnipotent? Deep third works just fine imo.

 

[SuperHeiyan]

Why should third be omnipotent? Deep third works just fine imo.

I don't know what you mean as a "deep" third person but if you think about something opposite to omniscient perspective (which is close to what I mean as omnipotent due religious connotation but not really the same) then I know it as a limited perspective.
I didn't meant "3rd person is someone who knows everything" I meant "3rd person in fiction is an author who decides how story goes and so every his word is a law". In my opinion there is no such thing as an subjective author in fiction, his word is a "Word of God", subjectivety is only a thing in historical chronicles.
So author of Chronicles of Three Kingdoms can be subjective, but author of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, despite trying to emulate the writing of the former just can't because world of his story is fictional world based on historical one, not historical one. Same with Japanese heresy with gender-bender heroes of the Three Kingdoms which are merely emulation of emulation of emulation but truth of their own setting.

 

[KoyukiMegumi]

I dislike sudden point of view shifts within the same chapter. Makes me get lost, so I prefer it when it happens in the next chapter. As long as it makes sense. For my view shifts, I conclude with the MC losing awareness/consciousness, and instead of doing it, the same chapter that one ends, and the next starts with the shift. I also keep my FP view.

No one has gotten lost, and they have told me they love to see both sides as I present them. :3

1rd person is not, it's more the case of "unrelliable narrator" and this is helpful if you don't wan't to give readers undue hints or want to give them wrong ones.

I love doing this to my readers. Send them on the wrong road because the MC is wrong. Then boom, it gets revealed how wrong they were! c: It is why I love the FP view. Though some people don't like this and want to know everything.

 

[greyblob]

I don't know what you mean as a "deep" third person but if you think about something opposite to omniscient perspective (which is close to what I mean as omnipotent due religious connotation but not really the same) then I know it as a limited perspective.
I didn't meant "3rd person is someone who knows everything" I meant "3rd person in fiction is an author who decides how story goes and so every his word is a law". In my opinion there is no such thing as an subjective author in fiction, his word is a "Word of God", subjectivety is only a thing in historical chronicles.
So author of Chronicles of Three Kingdoms can be subjective, but author of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, despite trying to emulate the writing of the former just can't because world of his story is fictional world based on historical one, not historical one. Same with Japanese heresy with gender-bender heroes of the Three Kingdoms which are merely emulation of emulation of emulation but truth of their own setting.

Well, I don't disagree with this, but it doesn't have much to do with what I said.
Deep third is the equivalent of first person from a third person prespective. The writing is from the character's prespective only, so the advantages of first still apply. Something along the lines of "Jake tighly clutched his head. The headaches were getting worse, and two hours of sleep a day certainly didn't help."