A Crash Course in POV: Part Two by Annette M. Irby

Camera lens and focus*

Last month, we began our series on POV (point of view). You can read that post here. Welcome to part two. As promised, I’ve included several definitions to help us navigate POV as we write. 

Every scene requires a POVC (point-of-view character). At the beginning of each scene, ground us in the POVC’s perspective so we can: 1) view the setting; 2) feel the POVC’s feelings; 3) care to keep reading; and 4) not have characters materializing on the page.

From that chosen POVC, describe the setting as the scene opens. If certain other characters are present, and our POVC knows it, show us. One of the mistakes I often see is characters materializing suddenly because the author didn’t show us who was present. Readers might think: where did he come from?

To help ground readers in one character’s perspective, you’ll first need to decide which character to choose for the scene you’re writing. To do this, ask: which character has the most to lose? Choose that character as your POVC and then leverage that emotion/angst/tension for a satisfying reading experience.

Now, here are some definitions:

Omniscient POV: Describing a scene from a third-party’s perspective. This is when writers do not choose a main character through which to give us the narrative. Like we discussed last month, omniscient POV was once commonplace. Currently the trend is purist POV (see definition below). One of the biggest problems with omniscient POV, besides the fact that this technique isn’t what today’s readers expect from new fiction, is that it reads like author intrusion. Oftentimes, it comes across as sounding opinionated, and/or it reads like non-fiction (in a fiction manuscript). Most readers are turned off by author intrusion and/or reader feeding. Omniscient POV also distances readers from the MCs’ (main characters’) experience and emotions, which will mean having a less satisfying fiction reading experience.

Purist POV: Remaining in one character’s perspective for an entire scene or chapter. Only give what the point-of-view character would experience with his/her five senses, and how that person interprets what’s happening around him/her.

Head hopping: This is when a writer switches between POVCs within a single scene or chapter, without using a scene break symbol. Once you commit to your scene’s POVC, stay in that person’s head.

Collective POV: This is my own term, and I use it to refer to sharing more than one characters’ experiences at one time, like: they all felt better once the lights came back on. This writer has told us how everyone feels, rather than staying in one character’s POV. A better way to say this would be to say: Everyone sighed with relief, OR everyone seemed to feel better…

Multiple POV: This is when a book is written through several POVCs’ experiences, like an ensemble cast. This is fine, so long as each chapter or scene is written in one POVC’s perspective.  

One more tip: your POVC’s gender influences how they tell their parts of the story. Let their dialogue and inner monologue be in their gender’s voice.

Are there exceptions to these guidelines? Sure. Each genre has its own “rules.” Just know, when an agent or acquisitions editor sits down with your manuscript, they’ll be looking for the basics in your writing technique, including POV.

Your turn: Do you have any questions about POV? Have you learned a few tricks that help you stay aware of who your POVC is for a given scene or chapter? Share your thoughts in the comments. 

Her Nerdy Cowboy

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Her Nerdy Cowboy

Whoever heard of a bookish cowboy? When Logan McDaniel’s brother-in-law dies, he steps in to help his beloved sister run her ranch. But what does a city boy know of herding cattle? Claire Langley loved her cousin. After he dies, she agrees to serve as a temporary nanny for two heartbroken children. 

Claire and Logan find they share a love of books, and Claire can’t resist the nerdy uncle who is great with children, and who reads to her of pirate romance. Claire’s ailing mother needs her in Seattle. Can she break away? And if she does, can there ever be a future for Logan and her?

~~~~~ 

Annette M. Irby

Annette M. Irby has three published books and 

runs her own freelance editing business, AMI Editing. 

See her page here on Seriously Write for more information.

Photo credit: the awesome people at Pixabay.

Characterization of Teens vs. Adults by Annette M. Irby

Student with laptop*

Have you ever written a character that wasn’t close to your own age? For instance, perhaps you’re thirty-eight, but your character is sixteen. Or you’re writing a twenty-something, but he’s coming across as fifteen?

Years ago, I had written a story with a female lead who came across to early readers as adolescent, but that’s not what I’d meant to portray. And at the time, I couldn’t always discern why she seemed so young. Then, recently, as I was editing a manuscript (not the earlier one), I saw a pattern in the character’s actions that brought up this adolescent vs. adult characterization. So, I brainstormed some differences between teens and adults. These are generalizations, but perhaps you'll find them helpful:

Teens overreact to situations, perhaps because they haven’t seen them before. Challenges feel like “the end of the world.”

Adults have weathered tough situations and know storms pass.

Teens tend to participate in and tolerate melodrama in their lives.

Adult generally prefer less drama.

In the lives of teenagers, there are lots of firsts (first job, first romance, first drive). So youthful characters would experience more wonder, less cynicism, more optimism.

Adults have more life experience. Adults can sometimes become cynical and pessimistic as they see evil patterns repeated over time.

Teens tend to judge.

Adults often overlook flaws more than teens do.

Teens tend to focus on externals. For example, one of the first requirements in romance might be appearance.

Adults generally search for internals. In romance, adults might look for character traits they now realize they need or prefer in their lives.

Teens generally aren’t cautious. They feel immortal, like risks, and perhaps have pride. They are independent, feeling the consequences of their actions only affect them. They tend to think “it’s all about me.”

Adults have matured. Life has humbled them. Since others (employers, spouses, children) are counting on them (more than in their youth), they tend to take fewer risks for the sake of others. “It’s about them.”

Teens don’t generally think long term. They make decisions for the situation they’re in, rather than consider how they’ll feel twenty or thirty years in the future. (Perhaps because they have only just begun thinking in terms of decades. They can’t imagine carrying a regret for a lifetime.)

Adults consider life decisions in terms of regrets, and the “test of time.”

Teens are still learning to be responsible (drivers, employees, stewards, etc.)

Adults have generally learned the value of responsibility.

Teens tend to shy away from unpleasant tasks, choosing procrastination. (Perhaps out of fear they won't have the necessary skills or know-how.)

Adults have learned how to reward themselves for tackling difficult jobs and the satisfaction of having them finished. Adults also tend to trust they'll have the capability (or resources) to finish the job.

Teens tend to think in terms of “black or white” (or, shall we say “red or green”).

Adults know there is always more than one side to every story.

Teens tend to go along with popular mindsets.

Adults analyze mindsets and develop their own set of beliefs.

Again, these are generalizations. For the twenty-something character, you could combine some of these traits because twenty-somethings are figuring out the world, and learning “responsible independence” for themselves. I hope this list helps when working on characterization.

Write on, friends.  

*photo credit: "Student" by Gualberto107 at freedigitalphotos.net

~~~~~ 

Her Nerdy Cowboy

Her Nerdy Cowboy

Whoever heard of a bookish cowboy? When Logan McDaniel’s brother-in-law dies, he steps in to help his beloved sister run her ranch. But what does a city boy know of herding cattle? Claire Langley loved her cousin. After he dies, she agrees to serve as a temporary nanny for two heartbroken children. 

Claire and Logan find they share a love of books, and Claire can’t resist the nerdy uncle who is great with children, and who reads to her of pirate romance. Claire’s ailing mother needs her in Seattle. Can she break away? And if she does, can there ever be a future for Logan and her?

~~~~~ 

Annette M. Irby

Annette M. Irby has three published books and 

runs her own freelance editing business, AMI Editing. 

See her page here on Seriously Write for more information.

The Road to Creating Great Characters by Kathryn Springer

Kathryn Springer

The Road to Creating Great Characters

By Kathryn Springer

Recently I had the absolute privilege to attend the Country Memories Farm Writing Conference in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, as a workshop leader. A beautiful setting, sweet fellowship with other writers, words that blessed and encouraged and. . . alpacas! Speaking anywhere is a gigantic leap out of my comfort zone, but for a girl who loves God’s creation, it was better than a day at the spa. :)

My topic was creating great characters because, well, because I love great characters! The books that line my “keeper” shelf (okay, shelves!) all have something in common. The characters became so real it was like making a new friend. And you keep your friends close, right?

The more you get to know a person, the more they reveal about themselves, which results in an emotional connection. It’s the same thing when it comes to our characters. We want the reader to get to know them. To bond with them. To remember them.

During the workshop, I shared some of my favorite ways to bring characters to life—habits and hang-ups (we all have them!) and the use of props.

Inward thoughts and feelings are usually expressed in outward behavior, so when it comes to your characters, make them count. Tie a habit to something in your character’s past. One of my heroines kept butterscotch candies in her pocket. When she was a little girl, her dad knew she struggled to control her temper so he doled these out to her with the rule that she couldn’t speak until it was gone—and she couldn’t chew it! It was a habit she carried into adulthood. She even knew how long it took for one to dissolve (6 minutes and 38 seconds!). When she and the hero clashed, she went through a lot of candy. In one humorous scene, she handed him a piece and by the end of the book, he was carrying his own private stash!

I brought a life-size, cardboard cut-out of Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz to use as a visual aide for the workshop. She’s holding a basket and her dog, Toto, and wearing the ruby slippers. They’re her standard “props,” aren’t they? But think about props in terms of character.

When the story opens, Dorothy is running away from Miss Gulch, who wants to do away with Toto. That basket is more than just a cute accessory—it reveals Dorothy’s heart. It symbolizes her desire to protect those she loves, even if it means putting herself in danger. On her way to Oz, you see that quality again when the Cowardly Lion bullies the Scarecrow. Dorothy puts her own fears aside and stands up to him.

Consider some of the props in great epic stories. Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber, King Arthur’s Excalibur, Frodo’s ring. Props can reveal a character’s dreams and goals and values. Their God-given gifts or abilities. Sometimes even their greatest fear.

Now think about props as they relate to your characters. Props can also represent a specific career. A musical instrument, a paintbrush, or a laptop computer. A gun if you’re writing suspense. A diary, a piece of jewelry, even a stray dog can be a prop.

Ask yourself what would happen if they lost it. What if it were taken away? Maybe the prop is holding them back from becoming the person God wants them to be. Maybe it’s going to save the world. . . or someone they love.

I hope some of these things got you thinking about your characters in a new way! Now, off to the kitchen to grab some chocolate. . . not that it’s a habit of mine. :) 

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Annette here: I love this advice! So, how about your characters? What kind of props have you given your characters, or could you give them?  

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USA Today bestselling author Kathryn Springer grew up in a small town in northern Wisconsin, where her parents published a weekly newspaper. As a child she spent hours at her mother’s typewriter, plunking out stories about horses that her older brother “published” (he had the stapler) for a nominal fee. Kathryn loves writing about imperfect people, small towns and a great big God.

When she isn’t at the computer, you’ll find her curled up (in the sun!) with a good book, spending time with her family and friends or walking the trails near her country home. 

~~~~~~

A September Bride

All Annie Price has ever wanted is a place to call home. So when an online friend offers her a fresh start managing a little bookstore in Red Leaf, Wisconsin, Annie packs her suitcase and says good-bye to her former lonely life.

Deputy Jesse Kent can't believe his mother has handed the keys to her bookshop to a woman she met on the internet. Annie might be vivacious, smart as a whip and beautiful—but what do they really know about her? Jesse has seen his mother taken advantage of before, and he decides to keep a close eye on Annie.

But when a close eye turns into a historical wedding reenactment with Jesse and Annie as the couple, make-believe nuptials quickly give way to real-life emotions. As the wedding approaches and Annie and Jesse's secrets some to light, the deputy has to face the truth: this wedding was just a ploy, but he might want Annie to be his September bride. . . for real.