I'm very excited to continue talking about multiple points of view in fiction with you all today! In last week's post, I talked about three important questions to ask yourself before adding another point of view to your novel (you can read that post by clicking this link here). Today, I'm sharing three tips on writing a novel with multiple points of view. Most of the projects that I've worked on have had at least two points of view in each, and I'm excited to share what I've learned from reading and writing stories with multiple points of view! =) 

#1 Let your readers know when you're switching between points of view. 

As I mentioned in my last post on multiple points of view, having more than one point of view can be confusing. Key words: Can be. It can be confusing if you don't warn your readers when you're switching between points of view. This is especially important to remember in first person narratives, when there is less use of the point of view character's name. 

For example, there are multiple points of view in the second and third books of Sara Ella's Unblemished trilogy. To keep everything less confusing, the author dedicates a chapter to each point of view and marks each chapter with the name of the point of view character. Imagine how confusing it would be if she skipped from one character's journey to another, with just a pretty divider in between! 

The Take-Away: Don't skip from points of view seamlessly, especially if you're writing in first person. Make sure that your readers know when you move on to another point of view. 

#2 Don't use too many points of view. 

Have you ever read a book with more than four points of view? I can't think of single one, and there's a reason for that. It can get confusing with lots of different points of view. It would be hard to balance each character's part in the story equally, not to mention keep the readers interested in all of the characters and their separate journeys. Lots of point of view characters can be okay, but you'd have to be really careful as to not confuse your reader or lose her interest. 

The Take-Away: Try to limit how many point of view characters you use. 

#3 Make each point of view sound unique. 

This is a biggie! It's not just the confusion aspect that is a problem here. If all of your characters are sarcastic and gloomy or cheery and full of rainbows and unicorns, they will all sound like one person. Having all of your characters sound the same won't let them shine as the unique and memorable characters that you have created them to be! 

Instead of adding lots of snark to each point of view, think about your characters. What makes them special? What aspects of writing could best bring out their personalities? Lots of monologue, more action? After all, would sweet and innocent Sally really roll her eyes or whine on the pages? 

The Take-Away: Let your characters shine! Allow them to be their unique selves on the pages, and their voices will stand out as unique and memorable ones. 

 Does your novel have more than one point of view? And what is your favorite book that has multiple points of view? I'm all ears! =D 

3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Adding Another Point of View To Your Novel

Annnnnddddd I'm back. xD Apologies for the unplanned hiatus! Life has been a bit crazy, what with the start of my first draft of my novel (I AM SO EXCITED GUYS) and a whole lot of other exciting stuff (such as the fact that I finally got INSTAGRAM!!!!!). I am so happy to jump back into blogging. I've got lots of exciting things planned for you all, including more book reviews, photography, and details about my current WIP! =D 

But for now, let's talk about points of view in novels. Specifically adding points of view to your novel. Is it good? Is it bad? The answer to both of those questions can't be found until you ask yourself these three very important questions. ;) 

Will this work with the narrative voice I've chosen?

Other points of view just might not sound very good with the narrative voice you've chosen. Maybe it's just me, but I prefer having multiple POV stories in a third person omniscient narrative voice. For example, here's a snippet of writing featuring two points of view in the first person narrative voice:

My heart hammered in my chest. I couldn't believe it. What had he just said? "Say it again," I breathed.

Timothy ran a hand through his hair and met my gaze. "I like you, Amber." 

~~~

There. I had said it. I liked her. I looked down at my feet. I wouldn't expect her to feel the same way, especially since I had lied to her about the letters, but still.... 

Is it just me or is that a tiny bit confusing? We skipped from Amber to Timothy SO quickly. It felt a little choppy, even with the "divider" signaling a change, and the voices didn't sound very distinct. Let's look at this same snippet in third person omniscient, shall we?

Amber's heart hammered in her chest. She couldn't believe it. What had he just said? "Say it again," she breathed. 

Timothy ran a hand through his hair and met her gaze. "I like you Amber." 

There. He had said it. He liked her. Timothy looked down at his feet. He wouldn't expect her to feel the same way, especially since he had lied to her about the letters, but still... He could hope, right?

In this third person omniscient voice, it's not only easier to add extra points of view, but it is also less confusing and has smoother transitions. This by no means goes to say that first person narratives with multiple points of view are bad (they can be done well!). I'm only bringing this up as something for y'all to consider. =) 

Will the other points of view weigh the story down and take away from it, or will they move the plot/theme/arcs/etc. along? 

Adding some extra points of view might not make your story better. Those extra points of view could weigh it down instead. For example, if I'm reading a story about a little girl named Lilly who's buying ice cream from an ice cream truck, I don't want to know what the ice cream truck driver or the boy riding his bicycle past her are thinking. I'm only concerned about Lilly getting her ice cream. Reading those other points of view would drag the story along and add a bunch of unneeded story. 

However, if the story was about Lilly and the boy riding his bicycle past her, it's okay to include his point of view. Adding his point of view would help introduce him, move the plot along, and even help reinforce a theme, amongst other things. It would deepen the story and help the reader understand things that one couldn't understand with just Lilly's point of view. 

Will these extra points of view confuse my readers? 

Has anyone else ever read a book with what seemed to be only one point of view character, but then later, about halfway through the book.... There's for some reason another one? And then you only hear from this POV for five pages? It can be confusing, y'all, trust me. Multiple points of view get confusing when there are too many of them or if they're introduced too late in the novel, amongst other reasons. If you think that your extra points of view might be confusing to your readers, have another person look over your manuscript with this specific question in mind. 

I hope that you'll join me next week as I share three tips on writing multiple POVs in your novel! =) 

Do you prefer novels with just one POV or multiple POVs? Do you have anything that you'd like to add to my thoughts? =)