In this essay ❧ I talk about what viewpoint is and how to use it in writing

Viewpoint is the place from which a story is told: the narrator's position. Talking about a place, means that the writer lives in a society. He writes with the tools culture provides and she must find how to enjoy them. For example, writing a romance novel part-time while being a freelancer it's different from writing as a student of a creative writing program, and those are different from writing full-time thanks to a scholarship. In the same vein, German writers can't invent novels the same way as Miami romance writers: they can learn or imitate from each other, but everyone, every community, makes things up differently, according to their traditions, history, political environment, and so on. German authors have less sympathy for the concept of a hero than Americans and British, for example.

Is Money a Problem? From which place do you write?

Although one can't deny money, status, and education play a key role in everybody's life, I think it is a mistake to think of these constraints as limitations. If you assume that, you may feel discouraged, and chances are you'd omit some advantages you have. Were you born to a low- income family? Tell the story; do you live in a small town? Your expenses are smaller than the budget of writers living in New York or London; do you lack contacts in the publishing industry? Take advantage of how Amazon has revolutionized the books industry. In other words, focus on what you have and don't let those constraints stop you.

You better regard all these things during viewpoint setting because writing a book is a social act, as social as any other business.

For all that the narrator's position is not the same as the writer's, writers do better by being aware of the tools and constraints society poses over their writing. And don't forget that with will almost everything is possible.

Technicals distinction among omniscient, subjective third person, and the first person

There are three types of viewpoints: omniscient, subjective third person, and first person.

The omniscient narrator behaves like God. She accounts for everything without limits. The advantage is that you have to tell things, and there are fewer technical complications like shifting viewpoints or solving how a character comes to know something. The huge disadvantage is that it is distant and sometimes dull, perhaps typical of an older period (the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century). Contemporary readers may not like it because they want to figure out things themselves and establish a close relationship with the characters.

The subjective first-person narrates from one character's perspective (the protagonist) with the chance of shifting into another viewpoint (the antagonist, a sidekick, or even an object). This technique facilitates the reader to sympathize with the heroine while the writer has enough chances to account for every meaningful fact in the plot. The only unfavorable circumstance I see here is that shifting viewpoints requires a method and patience.

For me, the first person is the most difficult because it only tells the things that the protagonist lives, so you have to invest a lot of imagination to convey everything (for the same reasons, there may be more chances for errors.) But this is also the most exciting outlook of a story, for the reader can be in the character's skin. This technique is for experienced writers.

The Role of Each Narrator

The viewpoint character is not a reporter, bystander, or neutral observer. He has a stake in the story.

It's not a coincidence that narrators speaking like pure observers were prolific in the 19th century. In those times, readers may find amusing a scientific style read. Today is boring.

Floating Viewpoint is Pain

A young writer wants to add as many details as possible. She believes that one of Dostoyevsky's secrets was commenting thoroughly on society. So, he decides to switch to a different character each time new impressions and texture can be conveyed from a new character. In one scene involving A, B, C, D, and E, the account starts with A senses and thoughts, but as long as B runs into A, she decides to tell B feelings (instead of making up how those feelings would look like from A's perspective). A and B join C and D in a table: the author feels compelled to shift to C and D's viewpoints --still in the same scene. As a result, the reader has received a bunch of hard-to-understand information and wants to dump the book: he guesses few chances of relaxation and escaping.

When does shifting viewpoint become shallow? When the narration expresses new information without shifting and slowing the pace. Two good reasons to shift viewpoint are i) a split up (the protagonist is wounded or sick: these are situations of passiveness that slow the tale ), and ii) damage is about to befall and comes from a villain (so you show his view: the reader gets excitement from it and will hurry up to follow the development.)

How to Shift Viewpoint?

1. Don't shift during a scene.
2. The simplest way: insert a break space or typographical symbol.
3. Does the shifting set a subplot longer than a few paragraphs? Start a new chapter.
4. When moving: use the new beholder's name.
5. Pronouns confuse the reader.
6. Use indicators.
7. Name indicator: if you shift from A to B, say B felt different that morning instead of "He felt different that morning."
8. Physical indicator: let me suppose A's hair is blue and B's green: B felt different that morning because his new green hair looked incredible.
9. Physical trait (A was allergic to peanut butter): after contemplating his new (green) hair in front of the mirror, B went into the kitchen and prepared a peanut butter sandwich.
10. Rapid internalization: After the fight, A hugs B for the first time in their long friendship. (Break) B left the court and stoped before a traffic light. A bus stopped, and he saw the green hair he had set one day ago. However, the happiness that he was feeling came from another source, the hug A gave him.
11. There are as many indicators as human traits. Think at least on senses, emotions, and thoughts.
12. As Chester suggests, you can use red for senses (pain, sight, temperature, smell), green for emotions, and blue for thoughts. This color system can be used to design scenes and compare books.
13. The challenge for non-viewpoint characters lies in conveying their emotions without shifting into their perspective.
14. Savvy authors shift viewpoint when the novel needs a lull . Over chapter 8, when there is enough information on the new character, shift.