Point of View Puzzles
"Isn't it interesting that the same people who laugh at science fiction listen to weather forecasts and economists?"--Kelvin Throop III
Caveat Lector: This is by no means the first or last word on the subject, merely my attempt to summarize some thoughts on the nature and number of POVs. There are other excellent resources on the subject, including Forward Motion for Writers and the SFWA's pages, which cover related topics in more detail. (Yeah, this is turning into a standard disclaimer.)
Much of this essay could apply to any kind of fiction, but I'm taking my examples from science fiction and fantasy, the genres with which I'm most familiar.
Thanks to Chymera and Nancy Sauer.
Introduction
Once upon a time, my idea of an effective use of point-of-view (POV) in a novel was to have a couple throwaway POVs every chapter along with a cast of perhaps eight recurring POVs.
There are authors who could do this well, and there are authors who could make this an integral strength of the story. I didn't fit into either category at the time (and still don't). A friend who read that long-ago novel gently informed me that I was being confusing.
POV is one of those writers' resources that can either be transparent to the reader, or jarring. Some people have an instinct for it, while others work at it (I fall into the latter category). In what follows, I note common fallacies, most of which I've committed, and some thoughts on how to use it effectively.
Common Pitfalls
One common fallacy is the notion that more POVs are better (sometimes true, but more often not), and the related pitfall is the tendency of some new writers (I was one of them) to use an excess of POV characters. This is excusable in a novel, but can imbalance a short story.
The key word, of course, is "excess." How much is too much? It's a judgement call. For a novice writer, it's safest to err on the side of less rather than more. If dealing with one or two POVs is challenging, adding more will compound the issue. What does the story gain from having this person's perspective? If nothing's gained, snip.
Another possible pitfall is related to the too-many-POVs problem: too much headhopping. Readers' tolerance for headhopping (jumping between POVs) varies greatly. I'm tolerant of headhopping, and wasn't disoriented at all during, say, the banquet scene in Geraldine Harris' Prince of the Godborn. I know someone else finds every POV shift an effort. Most readers will lie between these extremes, but it's worth keeping the other extreme in mind.
Even for headhopping-tolerant readers, a POV shift requires effort, as the reader must reorient him-/herself into a new perspective with a new agenda. Readers who identify strongly with sympathetic characters and "see" the writer's world through his/her eyes tend to find this more disorienting, and a sudden shift from a likable hero to a disagreeable villain may be more than ordinarily off-putting to them.
On the flip side, Anne McCaffrey's young adult sf novel Dragonsong uses headhopping to good effect. As the story progresses, we see brief portions of it from the POVs of Menolly's mother Mavi, her sister Sella, her father Yanus, and other people. What makes this effective rather than distracting is that McCaffrey takes care to make the transitions smooth, and in each instance, the POV, even when it isn't Menolly, is focused on Menolly, giving the reader a kaleidoscopic view of her circumstances.
Headhopping and large numbers of POVs can exacerbate what I've started calling Dianora syndrome, after Guy Gavriel Kay's (excellent) fantasy Tigana. I'm sure others can think of their own names. It describes a phenomenon wherein one character becomes more compelling than the others, especially other POVs, and as a reader I become tempted to skip or skim the other POVs to get to the "good" bits (as you may guess, the compelling character in question is named Dianora). Ideally, each of your POVs should be as rewarding to read as the character you've invested the most time and sympathy on. In practice, you should attempt to make each POV interesting enough on his/her own merits that the reader won't want to skip what s/he might learn.
A subtler way to have POV troubles is to pick a "wrong" POV. I should qualify this: it's not so much that any given POV is "wrong" in an absolute sense, as that POV selection shapes the tale you end up telling.
A quick example: Cinderella. Cinderella's POV shows her travails and goodheartedness, her headlong fall into love with an unattainable prince, and her eventual triumph. The fairy godmother's POV shows an outsider's perspective on the family's troubled dynamics, determination to help the hapless girl, and a sad knowledge that the stepmother and stepsisters will get their comeuppance in the end. The prince's POV may realize little of the family conflict, but point instead toward his father's political machinations, his desire for true love instead of another arranged marriage. A stepsister's POV might show her despair, knowing herself less favored than the "true" daughter, and slowly poisoned by the stepmother's bitter words....
These are possible interpretations of the old tale, and indeed, a number of them have been written. Notice, however, the way in which the choice of POV colors the tale. POV is a filter between the reader and the writer, the listener and the story; it may be distant and "objective" (as with most omniscient POVs) or intimate and biased. (Someone said that each character is the hero/ine of his/her own story, and the point is worth repeating.)
Lack of coverage is a related problem that may arise from a "wrong" choice (or choices). If your POV character spends 80% of his/her time on the page reflecting on others' actions and this isn't your intention, something needs to give. Either the plot needs to be reworked so the appropriate character(s) can be "on the scene," or the POV choice needs to be reconsidered. Coverage is a common reason for larger POV casts in longer fiction.
By the way, lack of coverage can also be deployed as a strength. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories are an almost-perfect example: we see the mysteries unfold not through Holmes' eyes, which would reveal too much too quickly, but through those of his assistant Watson, who is much more in the dark, thereby preserving the suspense.
Appropriate Uses of Viewpoint Characters
Relax. I'm not going to take a stick and shake it at you for having your POV character dance in the rain.
The following are rules-of-thumb in trying to determine whether a particular POV character merits inclusion, perhaps with regard to a particular scene, or in the entire story.
Coverage: Is this the only character "on the scene" who can be expected to be a window on events for the reader? Is "direct" coverage of this sequence of events necessary? Sometimes a one-paragraph recapitulation of an offstage event can pack more punch than a chapter. (I'm reminded of Parke Godwin's "Half a baby in a ditch" in Firelord.) At other times the reverse is true.
Action: Is the character "on the scene" an active participant, or an observer? Which perspective would benefit the story more? While passive or active observers can both be used to good effect, an excess of passive observers can leech the vitality from the plot. Sometimes observers are also symptomatic of "frame" stories, wherein the "real" tale is told within the framework of another.
Insights: What unique insights does this character bring to the scene? A royal banquet will look different from the eyes of a servant, the eyes of the king, or the eyes of the drunken jester in the corner. Conversely, what unique insights into the character does the scene bring? Is it a character the reader will care about enough to pay attention to these insights?
Quantity: Do I need to add one more POV just for this scene? Most writers should err on the side of caution and aim for an efficient use of a few key characters. This is doubly true for most short stories. where the limited scope acts to restrict the number of POVs the average reader can tolerate.
Closing Thoughts
POV, despite being a deceptively simple concept, can trip up many a writer. It's tripped me up many times. While the thoughts above are general guidelines, don't limit your thinking to them. I have found it helpful to study fiction that has (or hasn't) used POVs effectively to try and figure out what is making them function well in that particular work. And if you come across any new insights, I'd love to hear them!
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