I’ve been thinking a lot about writing a series, and what an author must consider when it comes to point of view.
AVALANCHE is the third book in the Stone Mountain Mystery Series and is to be released June 25th, 2016. When I first started writing the series, I thought I was writing a standalone novel. Of course my characters took over, and now I have a series.
Early on, I decided to write in close third person from multiple points of view. Little did I know, that once I made that decision, I would have to stick to that for the rest of the series.
Here are some questions to ask yourself when you begin your novel. And when you ask these questions of yourself, don’t assume you’ll be writing a standalone novel. You just never know.
Do you plan to switch POVs?
If you’re going to have multiple POVs in your novel, it’s important to let your reader know this early on in the story.
It could be jarring for a reader to get half way through a novel, and the POV is ripped from underneath their feet and a new character steps in.
Changing POVs in the first few chapters will warn the reader this is your style and hopefully they’ll enjoy your book more. They’ll expect different characters to have their say, to drive the novel, and to provide surprises. They won’t get so attached to one POV that they can’t bear the change and toss the novel aside.
What POV type will you choose?
Can you be consistent for an entire novel or several novels?
- If you chose first person, do you stay in first person? Do you reference anything first person can’t possibly know?
- For Third person, are you writing third person, third person limited or omniscient? If limited, so you reference things character can’t know about? In limited reader can’t see into characters mind.
For the second book in your series, follow the same POV pattern. The reader will expect a similar style and voice in the second and following books.
BOOKS I’ve read on POV:
The Power of Point of View by Alicia Rasley
Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card
Characters, Emotions and Viewpoint by Nancy Kress
A Little About AVALANCHE (To Be Released June 25th, 2016):
On a cold winter morning, the safe at Stone Mountain Resort is robbed, and Kalin Thompson’s brother, Roy, suspiciously disappears. As Director of Security, Kalin would normally lead the investigation, but when her brother becomes the prime suspect, she is ordered to stay clear.
The police and the president of the resort turn their sights on Kalin, who risks everything to covertly attempt to clear Roy’s name. As threats against her escalate, she moves closer to uncovering the guilty party. Is Kalin’s faith in her brother justified? Or will the truth destroy her?
A Gift to My Readers from Imajin Books:
Imajin Books has put AVALANCHE on sale for $0.99 USD for a limited time. Grab your copy before the price goes up. It’s available for pre-order now.
Thanks for reading…
Thanks for Reading…
Creative Story Editors 
Excellent stuff. I’m a limited third sort of writer, but I love how you’ve handled multiple POV thus far without losing any of the mystery.
I’m also looking forward to Avalanche.
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Thank you, Allie. I love to read multiple POV novels, so I think that’s why I started writing that way. Now that I’m more experienced, I put more thought into what POV I’m going to choose. The current novel I’m working on is first person from one POV. That’s quite new for me, but lots of fun to practice.
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Great advice as ever. I’m working on a series and rewriting first in multiple POVs (three), all deep third.
I already have a few chapters written in the second, as got urge to write them, again multiple deep 3rd.
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Hi Roland,
If you’re writing in deep POV, a book you might check out is DEEP POV by Mary Kennedy. I forgot to list it above, but I found it very helpful.
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I disagree that a reader will be disappointed if you change POVs. I’m a reader as well as a writer, and when reading, it doesn’t bother me one bit if the POV is changed in the next scene, as long as the story is a good one. I think I would find it a bit boring if the story stayed in one POV all through the book. Another good book on deep POV is WRITING DEEP SCENES by Martha Alderson and Jordan Rosenfeld. Thanks for the additional references, Kristina.
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Hi Sharon, thank for stopping by. I think we’re saying the same thing, just in a different way. I enjoy reading books from multiple points of view, but I think it has to be done so the reader is prepared for it. My thoughts are if you read say three-quarters of a book and it’s all one POV, and then another comes along, it can be jarring to the reader. Thanks for the tip on another book. I’ll have to check it out.
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