Be a Better Writer--CHOOSING A POV CHARACTER
Posted: Sat Feb 28, 2015 1:15 am
Previous lessons here have been about POV—choosing to write in 1st or 3rd person (or more rarely, in 2nd person). This lesson also covers POV, but it’s about choosing a unique POV character. We’re always talking about making our Challenge entries (or any writing) out-of-the-box, and one way to do that is to write from a unique POV.
In this lesson, I’d really like some brainstorming from you all. Go ahead and read through my thoughts, which admittedly are largely colored by my own opinion. Then jump in with some of your own.
When writing biblical fiction, here are some options:
1. Rather than write from the POV of the well-known biblical character, write from a minor or “sidelines” character from a biblical story.
2. Write from the POV of someone acquainted with the well-known Bible character: their spouse, child, parent, best friend
3. Write from the POV of the well-known person, but as a child, or as a much older person, or immediately before or after the story in the Bible.
4. Make up a character who might also have been there.
I’m aware that writers have varying degrees of comfort with different types of biblical fiction, and with making up extra-biblical characters. Don’t do something you’re uncomfortable with, but if one of the above seems appealing to you, I’d encourage you to give it a try.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Two in a Tree
Question 1: Are there any other ways that you’ve illuminated Scripture by writing from a unique POV?
Moving away from biblical fiction—there are some interesting POVs you can experiment with for any type of fiction. Consider the following:
1. a neutral observer of a very dramatic story
2. a famous or historical person (with this suggestion, you can also use any of the above variants listed for biblical fiction)
3. a child. If you choose to write from a child’s POV, you need to decide about your child’s voice. Is she going to tell the story as if a seven-year-old would really tell it, for example? Or as an adult, relating an incident from childhood, with an adult’s insights? It’s especially challenging to write a story for an adult audience, but in a child’s voice.
4. a person who is somehow impaired: developmentally disabled, mentally ill, suffering from Alzheimer’s. Again, getting the voice right is tricky. Do you write as well as the person can actually communicate, or do you write as if they were somehow unimpaired and looking over their own shoulder, as it were? I wish I remember who wrote a wonderful story here several years ago—it was from the POV of a girl with Down’s Syndrome, and the narrative was extremely literary and articulate, but whenever the girl actually spoke, it was with the speech difficulties typical of Down’s Syndrome.
5. a person who is sleeping, unconscious, dying—or even dead. I’ll let you figure out the difficulties of that POV. I’ve seen them all done very well, and also…not so very well.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Stolen
Question 2: What other unique human POVs can you think of?
Moving on…consider writing from the POV of a supernatural being. I’ve read lots and lots of devil/demon stories, and probably as many angel ones. I’ve read a few from the POV of God or Jesus (but I don’t believe I’ve ever read one from the POV of the Holy Spirit). I always admire supernatural POVs—I only attempted it once, and it was hard.
Of course, if you’re a fantasy or allegory writer, you can make up all sorts of supernatural people or not-quite-human people and creatures.
And there are always sci-fi POVs—a person from the future, an alien, a robot…
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Perkin Loses His Purple
Question 3: What other unique supernatural POVs can you think of? Tips for writing in that POV?
Okay, there’s no more avoiding this…you can write from the POV of an animal. I’m not a huge fan of this POV, but I know that lots and lots of people love to write animal POV stories, and lots and lots of people like to read them. So I’m going to be objective here, (or at least I’ll try), and give some thoughts on writing this way. You animal-POV-writers, jump in any time.
1. Animal stories do not have to be children’s stories. If you’ve got a talking animal anyway, why not make him intelligent, articulate, witty, wry, wise?
2. Consider having the animal’s voice reflect the animal’s natural characteristics.
3. Have a reason for writing from an animal’s POV. If you’re teaching a lesson, and the lesson could be taught just as well with human characters, reconsider. (Oops, my bias is showing through. I’ll admit to a few animal POV pieces of my own…but I still don’t care much for them, unless they’re done exceptionally well).
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: The True Story of the Three Blind Mice
Question 4: What are some reasons why you might use an animal POV in an adult story? What pointers would you give to someone writing from an animal’s POV?
Finally—and this one REALLY makes me wince, but again, I realize that some people love it—you can write from the POV of an inanimate object. I’ve read stories from the POV of pulpits, Christmas cards, rocks, trees, dust bunnies, and fingernail clippings. Well, most of those, anyway, and some of them have been done VERY well.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: The Rocks Still Wait
Question 5: Why or when would you choose to write from the POV of an object? What are the problems with such a POV?
Homework: Respond to one or more of the questions I’ve posed throughout this lesson. Leave a link (just one, please) if you wish, but please tell us about the story you linked. What unique POV did you use? Why?
In this lesson, I’d really like some brainstorming from you all. Go ahead and read through my thoughts, which admittedly are largely colored by my own opinion. Then jump in with some of your own.
When writing biblical fiction, here are some options:
1. Rather than write from the POV of the well-known biblical character, write from a minor or “sidelines” character from a biblical story.
2. Write from the POV of someone acquainted with the well-known Bible character: their spouse, child, parent, best friend
3. Write from the POV of the well-known person, but as a child, or as a much older person, or immediately before or after the story in the Bible.
4. Make up a character who might also have been there.
I’m aware that writers have varying degrees of comfort with different types of biblical fiction, and with making up extra-biblical characters. Don’t do something you’re uncomfortable with, but if one of the above seems appealing to you, I’d encourage you to give it a try.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Two in a Tree
Question 1: Are there any other ways that you’ve illuminated Scripture by writing from a unique POV?
Moving away from biblical fiction—there are some interesting POVs you can experiment with for any type of fiction. Consider the following:
1. a neutral observer of a very dramatic story
2. a famous or historical person (with this suggestion, you can also use any of the above variants listed for biblical fiction)
3. a child. If you choose to write from a child’s POV, you need to decide about your child’s voice. Is she going to tell the story as if a seven-year-old would really tell it, for example? Or as an adult, relating an incident from childhood, with an adult’s insights? It’s especially challenging to write a story for an adult audience, but in a child’s voice.
4. a person who is somehow impaired: developmentally disabled, mentally ill, suffering from Alzheimer’s. Again, getting the voice right is tricky. Do you write as well as the person can actually communicate, or do you write as if they were somehow unimpaired and looking over their own shoulder, as it were? I wish I remember who wrote a wonderful story here several years ago—it was from the POV of a girl with Down’s Syndrome, and the narrative was extremely literary and articulate, but whenever the girl actually spoke, it was with the speech difficulties typical of Down’s Syndrome.
5. a person who is sleeping, unconscious, dying—or even dead. I’ll let you figure out the difficulties of that POV. I’ve seen them all done very well, and also…not so very well.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Stolen
Question 2: What other unique human POVs can you think of?
Moving on…consider writing from the POV of a supernatural being. I’ve read lots and lots of devil/demon stories, and probably as many angel ones. I’ve read a few from the POV of God or Jesus (but I don’t believe I’ve ever read one from the POV of the Holy Spirit). I always admire supernatural POVs—I only attempted it once, and it was hard.
Of course, if you’re a fantasy or allegory writer, you can make up all sorts of supernatural people or not-quite-human people and creatures.
And there are always sci-fi POVs—a person from the future, an alien, a robot…
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: Perkin Loses His Purple
Question 3: What other unique supernatural POVs can you think of? Tips for writing in that POV?
Okay, there’s no more avoiding this…you can write from the POV of an animal. I’m not a huge fan of this POV, but I know that lots and lots of people love to write animal POV stories, and lots and lots of people like to read them. So I’m going to be objective here, (or at least I’ll try), and give some thoughts on writing this way. You animal-POV-writers, jump in any time.
1. Animal stories do not have to be children’s stories. If you’ve got a talking animal anyway, why not make him intelligent, articulate, witty, wry, wise?
2. Consider having the animal’s voice reflect the animal’s natural characteristics.
3. Have a reason for writing from an animal’s POV. If you’re teaching a lesson, and the lesson could be taught just as well with human characters, reconsider. (Oops, my bias is showing through. I’ll admit to a few animal POV pieces of my own…but I still don’t care much for them, unless they’re done exceptionally well).
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: The True Story of the Three Blind Mice
Question 4: What are some reasons why you might use an animal POV in an adult story? What pointers would you give to someone writing from an animal’s POV?
Finally—and this one REALLY makes me wince, but again, I realize that some people love it—you can write from the POV of an inanimate object. I’ve read stories from the POV of pulpits, Christmas cards, rocks, trees, dust bunnies, and fingernail clippings. Well, most of those, anyway, and some of them have been done VERY well.
Here’s an example from the Writing Challenge: The Rocks Still Wait
Question 5: Why or when would you choose to write from the POV of an object? What are the problems with such a POV?
Homework: Respond to one or more of the questions I’ve posed throughout this lesson. Leave a link (just one, please) if you wish, but please tell us about the story you linked. What unique POV did you use? Why?