Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Linnea Worley on July 17, 2012 at 2:46pm

You're not mixing up POV's. You're writing in omniscient POV which means you see all all the knowledge. Usually there is a single narrator who tells what's going on and gives the information on the characters. None of the characters are the narrator.

I say don't rewrite it. There's no point. You might need to edit it to make it more clear that it's omniscient, but it's a perfectly valid POV and you can use it if you want. Your editor just might not have realized it's omniscient.

Permalink Reply by Vicki Batman on July 17, 2012 at 3:00pm

Have you considered a beta reader or two or three to get their opinion about confusing?

 

 

Permalink Reply by PrincessFitzgerald on July 17, 2012 at 3:20pm

It's a bit ambiguous as to how you are doing the point of view. I assume that you're just doing an omniscient perspective and you're narrating in the same style and syntax. That is, the way you write per character is the same, you just happen to write about different emotions. However, if you're doing this and getting into a stream-of-consciousness sort of style, where you're prose dramatically changes for each person you're showing (not just what they think, but how they think), then it gets more complicated. I doubt you're doing anything like James Joyce's Ulysses, but even starting to get creative with the way you present different character's thoughts might scare conventional genre publishers.

Ultimately though, changing POV isn't something that's impossible to publish. It it were legitimately changing, and doing so in a drastic way, you could still get a publisher's attention, they'd just have to be a literary fiction publisher.

Permalink Reply by Shawn Lamb on July 17, 2012 at 3:48pm

Omniscient POV is a a time-tested style. I'm a former screenwriter turned fiction author, so I use omniscient in cinematic flow, and never had a editor tell me that about my books.  If you make distinct breaks between characters, scene and narrator that shouldn't be a problem.

Permalink Reply by Kate McGuinness on July 17, 2012 at 5:54pm

I wonder if you're "headhopping." That's slang for skipping from inside one character's head to another character's head in the same scene revealing each character's thoughts and emotions. It's frowned on as being confusing to readers. Here's more information. http://www.writing-world.com/fiction/headhop.shtml

Without seeing your manuscript, it's hard to say if you're guilty of this. Perhaps if you read some examples of head hopping, you'll understand if that's what your friend is advising against. 

While omniscient POV is indeed "time tested," I understand that it is currently less popular. That doesn't mean you can't use it. Just be sure you use it well.

Permalink Reply by Susan Slack on July 18, 2012 at 2:23pm

Kate,
Thanks for the link. I read it and the link of the link. If I knew at the beginning what I did not know, I would not have started this project! But that's the way I seem to roll -- dive in head first then think if there are rocks below the surface.

I so appreciate your time here, and everyones. I will keep reading all these wonderful suggestions.

Susan

Permalink Reply by Kate Cone on July 17, 2012 at 6:37pm

Hi Susan! I am writing a novel with multiple points of view. For everyone who commented in my MFA workshops that I was committing hara kiri, there were others who suggested I read some books by authors who did the very same thing. Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatge was one.

It was nice of your friend to read it for you, but I'd keep after it. Look for agents. At some point stop showing it to family and friends (some people say NEVER show it to family and friends, and I agree), and get an agent you trust at a gut level. Whatever you're doing, it's been done and it can work. Keep going!

Kate Cone

Permalink Reply by Susan Slack on July 18, 2012 at 2:29pm

Hi Kate Cone,

Yes there is something in me that screams "You can't make me!" when told I must color within the lines. But as I mature, (I can tell by the gray hair) I am starting to think that maybe some lines are okay. Actually the person who looked at my first 50 pages is a friend AND and professional editor and was very gentle in her feedback. After reading some of these comments I realize how much she really does know about the business, and how much I do not. I think that is called "learning".

Thanks for your time, Kate. Isn't SW a wonderful tool?

Permalink Reply by Tyra Brumfield on July 17, 2012 at 6:43pm

In my endless research on writing...instead of actually writing, ahem...I found this article on POV helpful. POV is a pesky, little creature and is just one more thing to drive us all to drink. Good luck with your final draft.

http://www.sellingbooks.com/write-a-novel-point-of-view-and-techniq...

Permalink Reply by Kate Cone on July 18, 2012 at 9:55am

Thanks, Tyra. I found this article helpful. He says, though, shifting POV's can work, but not in the same "frame." I signal a shift now (this may change if it gets published and goes through an editor) by labeling the flashbacks with: "Ireland" and the year the action took place.  For my working draft, it helps.

Permalink Reply by Susan Slack on July 18, 2012 at 2:41pm

Hello Tyra,

I like what this guy says. He leaves the door open, more or less, to a "whatever works" frame of mind while at the same time reigning it in a bit. BTW, what are you drinking? Will you share?

Susan

Permalink Reply by Tyra Brumfield on July 18, 2012 at 3:40pm

Hey Susan,

Funny! If I can wiggle the wine cellar key out of my husband's pocket without his knowledge, it will be a Cabernet. That may be impossible. Hee. Glad you enjoyed the article. 

Glad you enjoyed the article too, Kate.

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