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Sooo – I rarely write in 1st person. I just don’t do it for unknown reasons. In my current WIP, I’ve decided to jump out of my comfort zone and try and write it in 1st person. It’s doing okay, but I’d like some tips as to how to write in that POV well? *shrug*
Also, I’m writing from two different characters POV, both in first person. Any tips on how to make that not super-confusing (other than noting in the chapter title that it’s a different character?)
@ryanna My current WIP is on 1st person too XD
When writing in 1st person you want your character to tell the reader what he/she hears, feels, sees, smells, tastes, and thinks. And you really want to show, and not tell.
For writing from two different characters POV’s from 1st person (I’ve never done this but I’ve read books like it), I guess I would say to make their thought process different.INFJ ~ 4w5
aldarley.wordpress.com@ryanna Show don’t tell is important, as always. Like, you don’t want to say, “Things were looking very bad for my plan.” Instead, you might focus on the downcast faces of the fellow conspirators. Or, you could do something subtle like this with the internal monologue: “I could be very optimistic at times, but surely this plan had to work. Not like my failed attempt last week. I remembered the faces of the guards and their long, curved swords, and I shuddered.” Okay, I actually combined internal monologue and action (shuddering), but whatever. They were both necessary for each other.
Also, think about what makes your narrators’ voices unique. Are they snarky? Are they obsessive about details. Are they slopy with details? Are they chronically scared? A first person narrating voice needs to have character.
Identifying your POV character at the beginning of the chapter sounds like a good idea. The only other thing I can think of is to have your characters introduce themselves as soon as they take over. I.e. “Okay, now that you heard Trisha’s side of the story, let me tell you what really happened.”
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I agree with @daeus. It is important to make sure that your character’s voice has personality and that the personality stays consistent throughout the narrative.
In general, I prefer how 1st person narratives sound in a story, and I’m very excited that you’ve decided to jump out of your comfort zone and try something new!
@daeus @epicaddie2 @tatiana Thanks for the tips! The ‘show don’t tell’ is certainly a good thing to always keep in mind. 😀
Whoops… I tagged your name instead of your username – @belegteleri
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