Writing Tip: Play With Perspective (Multi-POV)
Narrative perspective is a powerful tool that shapes the reader's experience. Playing with perspective and exploring various vantage points to tell a story offers unique insights and challenges. I’m writing another post about common perspectives for single-POV narratives (first, third, etc.) which will be published here within the next month or so, but today I’m talking specifically about writing multi-POV stories. Sometimes a narrative benefits from being told from multiple perspectives, so let’s discuss the pros and cons of different viewpoints. I’ll also do my best to provide practical tips for experimenting with narrative perspectives.
Writing from Multiple Perspectives: The Pros and Cons
Pros:
Depth of Understanding: Writing from multiple perspectives allows readers to delve deeply into the minds and emotions of different characters. It provides a nuanced understanding of diverse viewpoints, creating a more comprehensive and immersive narrative. It often gives us the opportunity for greater understanding than if we stayed in one singular perspective.
Complex Characterization: Each character brings their own experiences, motivations, and voice to the narrative. Exploring the story through various perspectives enhances character development, adding layers of complexity and making the cast more dynamic and relatable. Seeing how different characters internalize and act upon the same narrative event can give us insight into those characters—their values, fears, hopes, goals, etc.
Richer World-Building: Multiple perspectives offer the opportunity to explore different facets of the story's world. Readers gain a broader view of the setting, cultural nuances, and societal dynamics, enriching the overall world-building experience.
Narrative Unreliability: Playing with perspectives allows for the introduction of unreliable narrators. Characters may perceive events differently, introducing ambiguity and intrigue. This narrative device can keep readers engaged and questioning the truth behind the unfolding story.
Cons:
Complexity and Challenge: Juggling multiple perspectives typically requires careful planning and execution. I’m sure there are prodigies out there who can wing it, but I think even they probably go back through during edits and revisions to make sure it’s executed effectively. It can be challenging to maintain a consistent narrative flow and ensure that each character's voice is distinct. There’s also a risk of confusing or overwhelming readers if not handled with care. It can certainly be done (and well), but in my experience it helps to have a plan and then seek feedback from beta readers to make sure it’s working. More on this in a minute.
Reader Attachment: Readers may find it challenging to connect deeply with a vast array of characters. Investing emotionally in multiple perspectives might dilute the impact of individual character arcs. Maintaining reader engagement isn’t always easy when one character is more developed than the others, so it’s important to fully develop each one in meaningful and relatable ways. As readers, I’m sure we’ve all read a multi-POV story where we loved one character’s perspective, while another’s felt like we were slogging through just to get back to the person we connected with. It’s a pretty common experience for readers to prefer the chapters where their favorite/most relatable character is in the perspective seat. As writers, it’s our job to make our readers invested in all of them, whenever possible.
Time Constraints: Covering the story from multiple perspectives can extend the narrative timeline. Writers must carefully manage pacing to avoid sluggish progression. Balancing the exploration of different characters with a cohesive and well-paced plot is a delicate task. This particular issue is probably one of the ones I struggle with most in my own projects. In the following section (tips), I’ll share some of the things I’ve practiced to hopefully mitigate this issue, as well as the other typical challenges.
Tips for Writing from Multiple Perspectives
1. Establish Distinct Voices:
Ensure that each character has a unique voice and perspective. Distinctive dialogue patterns, vocabulary choices, and thought processes contribute to individuality. Readers should be able to identify the character based on their voice.
2. Consider Timing and Sequence:
Plan the timing and sequence of perspective shifts thoughtfully. Allow each character's perspective to unfold at a moment that enhances the narrative tension or provides valuable insights. I had to learn to avoid arbitrary shifts that disrupt the flow, because I had it in my mind that they needed equal time on page, and therefore determined that I should shift perspective every chapter, alternating back and forth between my two main characters. While that worked for book one, it did not for subsequent books in the series. I was trying to stick to a formula, rather than allowing the sequence to play out in its most intuitive way.
3. Highlight Contrasts:
Emphasize the contrasts between characters and their perspectives. Whether through conflicting opinions, contrasting experiences, or differing reactions to events, these contrasts add depth to the narrative and keep our readers engaged. It can also help readers connect more with the characters, because they see them as distinct, unique people.
4. Balance Depth and Breadth:
Strike a balance between delving deep into individual characters' experiences and providing a broader view of the overarching plot. Each perspective should contribute to the collective understanding of the story while maintaining a strong focus on character development.
5. Use Perspective to Enhance Themes:
Leverage different perspectives to emphasize themes and motifs in your story. Each character's viewpoint can shed light on specific aspects of the narrative's thematic elements, contributing to a more layered and nuanced exploration of the story's central ideas.
Perspective is a literary device worth exploring, and when we navigate multiple viewpoints, we can craft narratives that are rich in complexity, depth, and emotional resonance. It’s definitely a skill I’d consider to be more advanced, and I’m glad I didn’t know how hard it would be when I dove head-first into my multi-POV novel with literally no prior experience writing this way. My naivete allowed me to boldly explore something new, and I’m grateful for that! It did lead to lots of later adjustments during edits and revision, but ultimately it has helped me grow.
As a final note, I want to acknowledge that I’m still learning, so these pros/cons and tips are based on information I’ve picked up throughout my study of writing, and through my limited experience writing multi-POV stories. My unpublished fantasy series, The Manifold Chronicles, is told in dual-POV in book one, and multi-POV in books two and three. I’ve only fully written and edited book one. Books two and three are drafted, with book two currently undergoing a developmental edit. I should have those notes back next week to begin revisions, but this series is literally my first full-length multi-POV project, so take my thoughts in this post with a grain of salt. I happen to believe these tips are good ones, and they address some of the things I noticed while writing my own story, so I do hope they help. Perhaps once I’m more experienced with writing multi-POV narratives, I’ll do a follow-up to this post with more personal insights.
Happy writing!
