How to Choose Your Story's Point of View

There's a lot that goes into choosing your story's point of view, from the qualities of your narrator to your book's genre, but because it's something that's very hard to change later on, it's also a choice to think carefully about! In this video, we'll be talking about the most common point of views--1st person, 2nd person, and the three types of 3rd person--but also the theory behind point of view, how it works, and why it's so important.

TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - What is point of view?
3:00 - Choosing your POV
4:02 - 1st person
6:14 - 2nd person
8:48 - 3rd person objective
9:16 - 3rd person limited
11:33 - 3rd person omniscient

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[blueknees]

my novel is kind of experimenting with pov. the protagonist had all of her personal memories stolen, so in the first part of the story where she didn’t know who she is, the story is told in second person past tense, and then when she gets her memories back, it’s switched to first person present tense. so basically she was talking to herself about what had happened while she had amnesia, and then she got her memories back in the present time so she knows who she is now and tells the story in first person. kinda weird, but i want to see how it goes.

[NASTAR]

I've had this short story in my mind for a while that plays around with perspective. The protagonist being a young man who - growing up - comes to understand that there's no place in society for someone like him; that his feelings, thoughts, and desires, are abhorred. Because of this he suppresses a huge part of his identity which soon develops into a form of disassociation: identity 1) the 'mask' he shows everyone, and identity 2) his true self. His true self is the second person narrator of the story, observing the false identity and depicting his internal struggles. When he embraces his true self it becomes first person, symbolizing the protagonist choosing to no longer live a lie.

Anyway, It's great to hear someone actually mention the untapped potential of second person, and not just boil it down to injecting the reader into the story like pretty much every other person on youtube has. I'd like to add that the same way you mentioned first person doesn't have to be the main character, I think this works very well for second person, too: the POV character being someone who's observing another character - much like the Netflix show 'You'. Maybe the narrator is a character telling the adventures of a legendary figure, or recounting their journey with a person dear to them.

[gamewriteeye]

One of the perks of first person I don't think a lot of people consider is treating the story as a set of eyes and body. Can you recall the last time a narrator in first person doesn't talk to the audience (unless there's past tense or fourth wall break moments) that treats the story experience as the narrator living a life (recorded) and you happen to get that limited scope? I find that framing device not often talked about and most fascinating about first person. "Treating" the story as a living conduit using the five senses as descriptions (very sensory oriented). Current style I like experimenting with, as it feels immersive like deep third. Think of it like this: if the narrator doesn't see it, use another sense to convey what's going on like sound or smell. Treat the world setting as a tool to explore write what I'll dub "VR" pov. This does require a keen mind's eye though.

Pitfalls of this tool:
- story can bog down in pacing
- can rely on suspense and other horror elements which it seems to prize upon on the page
- laundry list descriptions, and character thoughts stringing to form a quieter "narration"

Strange Advantages/Disadvantages
- injecting narrator voice can make descriptions sound strange, if not outright zany (lends itself to comedy genres)
- not using narrative voice can make it sound like a fixed, but objective pov

Advantages
- Immersion "experience" writing like living the screen out on a theme park ride
- Immediacy and Intimacy with characters and the world, depending on how it's used
- mystery-solving alongside the character
- richer emotion depictions

[powercore]

I had a bit of an epiphany for second-person perspectives lately. At first, I thought the second person was extremely rare, and I wouldn't really use it because I wasn't very familiar with any media that used it. But, I realized that there is a form of media that uses the second person all the time, video games. Most games are written forms of the second person because it's much more explicit that the player's character is meant to the protagonist, not necessarily the player themselves. Since the abstraction between player and character is rooted in most games, they can get away with more liberal usage of the second-person without misconceptions. As opposed to books or more traditional media, where that abstraction is not implied, and people become uncomfortable because they think the text is referencing themselves directly.

Now, this video has inspired me to go back through a lot of narratively driven games I've played, and see all the times I missed the second-person references. Thanks for the new perspective on one of my favorite hobbies.

[thekrayonkidsbookadventures]

You are an amazing presenter...I have learned so much from . I had a bad writer's block during the pandemic and am just starting to get my discipline back ..my enthusiiasm has been there...I just needed to concentrate, organize and get it done. It will be my 5th children's book ..and now I am on a roll and have ideas for my 6th and 7th ...thanks millions ..to YOU ! Karen.

[JessiTheBestiGaming]

I did the prologue in third and plan on going third when my character is asleep or otherwise unavailable. I hope I can pull that off 😆

[morganjones]

I am currently writing a first person present tense, and I think my other story will be 3rd person limited. On the side I have a strange story that iv been coming back to when I get bored of the others... It is actually in second person, which happened without me really thinking it through. 😂. So yeah, fun times. Great video!

[makt]

I finally understand the 2nd person pov! Thanks so much Shaelin.

[LarryThePhotoGuy]

I am writing an adult fantasy/ romance/ erotica. My plan was to write in 1st person past (memoir style) from 3 POV of the 3 main characters; giving each their own chapters w/ their names and intermixing them. My opening was to be where these characters meet for the 1st time. My problem is that, as I developed their backstories and, hence, the flaws that each had to overcome; these backstories took on a life of their own. I am now thinking of writing it as a series of 4 novels.

The male character is adopted and knows almost nothing of his background. He begins to manifest odd abilities at a young age which lead to tragedy with his ordinary siblings. This seems to be enough for a novel on it's own.

The other 2 characters are an unwed mother and her daughter who share many characters and background details. Their flaws stem from the death of their parents/grandparents. I'm thinking of writing their stories together as a 2nd novel mixing their 2 POV.

The 3rd novel is now where the 3 characters meet and their flaws play out, leading all three nearly to their destructions. In this novel and the next, all 3 POV are used.

The 4th novel takes them to an ancient isle where they seek healing and the main adventure(s) takes place and ultimately are all saved. Love conquers all.

My question: Does this sound like a reasonable way to proceed? Have I bitten off more than can be chewed? Any advice?

[candellina]

You look so beautiful with that hair cut and, of course, you helped me so much with my current novel!

[griffingirl]

This video is great! I now know that the book that I'm currently writing is in 3rd person limited, I didn't know the terminology before so that's pretty cool

[rachelthompson]

Whatever you do, serve the story first. I see a lot of new writers lean on first person and to the extent it hurts the story. First person seems to be the go-to when third limited is a better way to learn how to write well.

[I_just_workhere]

You know, a good example for this would be the Divergent series. The first three book we are seeing through Tris's eyes or how she views the world and what's happening to her. Although, there fourth book in the series called "Four" and this one is about how everything that happened in the first three book affected Four. I found it very interesting.

[deblinabarua]

I remember one time when I got a story writing question during exam. Since usually in these questions they would have the starting line of the story or would have few words which gives the general idea of the story, I was surprised when the question was something like 'You are sitting near a creek with your friends and it is your last day here before you move out of that place.'
It was the first time I wrote in 2nd pov. Not sure if I did it properly though since some of my marks were cut. 😅

[everachild]

I like 2nd person when I am writing a CYOA story. It's just so much fun. But normally, I like 1st person. Never was able to master 3rd person.

[Umlee-Kerymansrivarrwael]

I am planning on writing a nine book long series that’s broken into three chunks of three books. I plan to use a different POV for each chunk, do you think this will interest readers or just confuse them?

[trackact]

Do you have any books with a good example of 2nd person? I honestly can’t think of one

[Monalisa-oibn]

I've gotten a bit comfortable writing in 3rd person limited with only 2-3 characters' thoughts (the protagonist, their companion, and the antagonist.) The series I want to write is a lot more complex and there is a whole cast of characters, so I've decided to take an episodic approach, I guess, to develop characters that play their own important roles in the world I'm creating by giving them their own book.

[ravichandranrajandran]

Hey shaelin..pls answer..can second person be used in specific parts only ??

[justcallmemarcus]

My most recent project is in third person, but as it takes place place in two worlds (alternate of each other) it technically has tow POV''s even though they are arguably the same person. I'm going with the principle of "As there, so here'. So whatever is happening in the other world, something similar is happening in this one.