My favorite is the limited third-person view. Personally, the first-person feels too intimate, and the omniscient third-person view feels like cheating :D
Rok Gomišček that’s such a great point-when I read third-person I definitely prefer the limited view as well. I prefer to focus in on specific characters rather than always see the “big picture.”
Whenever I read a novel in the third person, and I like it, I can't help fantasizing afterward about how much cooler it would have been in first person! There's something almost evasive feeling to me about reading this disembodied author discussing these other, apparently, more interesting people. I always want to know who the "I" in the novel is, even when there isn't one in the prose. For that reason, close third is kind of my least favorite pov - it feels like a lack of commitment! lol Usually, it would clearly make the book harder to write because of all the limitations first person imposes, so I understand, of course, why they chose third, but, I can't help imagining the first person narration of any protagonist I've come to love. For me, when I open a book and the book talks to me in the first person, I'm immediately more interested.
Thanks for this great summary. I’ve always been warned away from first person but I agree that it can be really compelling and am thinking of writing my second draft in first person.
I wish we can have you here in Lebanon to make courses for authors like these, maybe someday i will chat with you about this as i am a founder of eleven assemblies for children literature and if course there is among us autgors write for adults too.
I'm a new author trying to learn, I agree with you on first person perspective. it's super effective on getting someone dialed in to the character. Filling in the gaps while using other perspectives can really make or break the story line.
Jazlyn Gambol so glad you agree! The best first person narratives are a delicate balance between providing enough plot info and allowing the reader to get invested in a character.
I've really fallen in love with writing in first-person. My first two projects are first-person, present-tense. It's so different from most of my older writing, but I think it really suits my voice and style.
I also love first person as a reader! It really allows you to get inside the character's (or characters') head, and I think as a result the reader becomes much more connected to them.
@@AlyssaMatesic I agree! I knew when I started writing my first project, that I wanted the reader to see inside my character's mind as she struggled with grief and mental illness. Being able to write it with her voice as opposed to a narrator's really makes a bigger impact, I think.
Just came across your channel and absolutely love the advice! I do have a question: If a novel is written in 1st person, how you address writing scenes in which the character is not directly a part of? For example, the protagonist is the narrator, but we're reading a scene that takes place in the villain's lair. In this case, the protagonist is of course not physically present, so how can he discuss or know what's happening here?
That’s kind of the thing in 1sr person, you can’t. We can only know what the narrator knows. You could always have the narrator/protagonist find out in some roundabout way, like through another character or by spying, but it’s hard.
I also love first person novels. Who do you consider to be the top writers who use (or have used) first person? My first introduction was John D Macdonald and his Travis McGee series.
While middle grade isn't one of my own specialty genres, there are many excellent editors out there who do! I encourage you to check out websites like Reedsy, which host a variety of editors offering services across multiple genres--it's how I got my start as a freelance editor as well.
I'm writing a a romance in 1st person but when planning stories I tend to think in 3rd person. So, is it too weird to write the majority of the book from the MC's perspective but then have a different character's POV come through for only a few chapters?
It may be disorienting to switch to the other character's POV, especially if it's only for a few chapters. I recommend trying to keep the POV as consistent as possible.
Hi and thank you for this video. I am writing a book in first person POV but I absolutely need to have 6-7 scenes where the narrator is not present. Can I switch to third person limited for those scenes? (I still want the readers to feel more connected to the main protagonist) Is it acceptable? I know some might say just go ahead and break the rules, but I just really want to know if the rules allow this
Hate first person! I want to know what's going on over here with the bad guy or other characters and not be stuck with the same person the whole book. Great video though...and Greta Thunberg looks like the host here.
