z

Young Writers Society


What PoV would be better?



Which PoV do you think would be better?

Character A
7
54%
Character B
6
46%
 
Total votes : 13


User avatar
1125 Reviews

Supporter


Gender: Female
Points: 53415
Reviews: 1125
Wed May 10, 2017 10:15 pm
StellaThomas says...



In my novel, Character A and Character B are sort of frenemies. At the climax of the novel, when interacting with the main antagonist, Character B unexpectedly kills the antagonist.

In the last draft, Character B didn't have a PoV of their own, so this was all seen through Character A's eyes. It was a really fun, "wait, WHAT??" moment for me to write.

Now, though, Character B has had a point of view for the whole novel. This is their moment to shine at the climax of the novel.

So I have to decide which one is better. A would provide shock value and make the plot twist more out-of-the-blue and unexpected. B would provide further character depth and let the moment belong to B entirely.

Which do you think I should go for?
"Stella. You were in my dream the other night. And everyone called you Princess." -Lauren2010
  





User avatar
107 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 9326
Reviews: 107
Wed May 10, 2017 10:23 pm
View Likes
Cadi says...



As you say yourself, both options have upsides! It's hard to say for certain without seeing the whole work, of course, but on a very superficial levels with what you say here, cast my vote for A - I like the idea of a bit of shock value!

Of course, one option would just be to try writing both sides! Obviously you'll probably only keep one (although some novels do do the whole "two sides of the same events" thing, I don't know if that would work here), but trying to write both might give you insight into which one you liked better. If character A was fun but character B becomes a drag to write, you've got an answer! etc
"The fact is, I don't know where my ideas come from. Nor does any writer. The only real answer is to drink way too much coffee and buy yourself a desk that doesn't collapse when you beat your head against it." --Douglas Adams
  





User avatar
61 Reviews



Gender: None specified
Points: 125
Reviews: 61
Wed May 10, 2017 10:49 pm
View Likes
Feltrix says...



I say B. Although shock value is nice, if it's too shocking, there can be a moment of disbelief and it can come off wrong. If we see things from character B's perspective, though, you give the antagonist the death he/she/they deserve.
Intrepid Explorer
Squire of the Green Room
Harbinger of the Cosmic Squid
Brief Castaway
Founder of Hermits United
TIME Magazine's 2006 Person of the Year
Dark Matter Overlord
Kind of a Big Deal
  





User avatar
373 Reviews



Gender: Female
Points: 46306
Reviews: 373
Wed May 10, 2017 11:00 pm
PrincessInk says...



Spoiler! :
Sorry, but I didn't really vote because I'm not that sure myself.


One choice you could consider is to have alternating POVs. This often happens when the main characters end up in different places and you, as the writer or reader, want to know what's up with the other character! But if A and B are in the same places for most of the novel, probably alternating will be boring because the same scenes can be repeated over and over.

I do think that repeating the scene for two POVs wouldn't be effective, though. All in all, if you're choosing one POV, what's most important is which POV suits the novel, not only the glittering climax! I do agree that perhaps A's POV may be the more exciting. I also agree with Cadi that trying out both is a great idea--BUT the most important part is: Which character's story do you want to tell?

Some other food-for-thought questions that may help are: What are their overall motivations? Why does A want to kill the antagonist? Why does B want to? How is the events going to change them?

I hope this post helped, and wasn't too boring ;)
always daydreaming, always clumsy
  





User avatar
696 Reviews

Supporter


Gender: Female
Points: 5533
Reviews: 696
Thu May 11, 2017 12:04 am
Audy says...



Without knowing more about A, I would say B only because that character at that moment in time is closest to the event and action, and observer characters can be (meh), whereas a character with agency is almost always more interesting and engaging due in fact to agency alone.

However - there could be more going on that I'm just not aware of , perhaps A DOES have a lot of interesting emotional conflicts in that moment, perhaps A was going in for the kill and failed and that exasperates the frenemies status more like a "the enemy of your enemy is your NEW ENEMY and THAT's the story you are wanting to emphasize. I don't really know enough of A's story arc to know for sure! Ultimately, my words are grains of salt and the story is yours!
  





User avatar
621 Reviews

Supporter


Gender: non-binary
Points: 4984
Reviews: 621
Thu May 11, 2017 2:06 am
View Likes
Rook says...



Midquel. 2 entirely separate books relaying the same events from different perspectives. Example: Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow.
Instead, he said, Brother! I know your hunger.
To this, the Wolf answered, Lo!

-Elena Passarello, Animals Strike Curious Poses
  





User avatar
83 Reviews



Gender: Female
Points: 6057
Reviews: 83
Thu May 11, 2017 2:40 am
EscaSkye says...



Hm, I agree with fortis about a midquel, but basing my answer on the poll choices, then I think you should stick with B. I think that if you use A's perspective, there might be a chance that it could throw people off if most of the POV used so far is B (unless you've been alternating between the two on a roughly equal basis). Plus, on a personal note, I find character depth more interesting than a shock value. Of course, it'd be great if both could be pulled off.
Not anymore.
  





User avatar
1333 Reviews

Supporter


Gender: Female
Points: 25775
Reviews: 1333
Thu May 11, 2017 4:07 am
View Likes
Hannah says...



I would ask which one feels like a stronger story for you -- B's evolution toward that/after that moment, or A's evolution in relationship with B and how that affects A's views on life/friendship/B after the event?
you can message me with anything: questions, review requests, rants
are you a green room knight yet?
have you read this week's Squills?
  





User avatar
1125 Reviews

Supporter


Gender: Female
Points: 53415
Reviews: 1125
Thu May 11, 2017 10:39 am
View Likes
StellaThomas says...



Thanks everyone for their input, it's been super helpful so far.

The poll is 50:50 so that hasn't been as much help as everybody's advice! XD

@Audy - I suppose I should point out that at that moment in time, Character A is in a fairly charged state - they've just come out of an unspeakably awful situation and they come to the antagonist for retribution - probably to kill them, except that they can't quite build up the nerve. So I'm not too concerned that they would be a bystander, if that makes sense, they're still playing an active role - it's just that Character B kills the antagonist before A gets the chance.

@Hannah you hit the nail on the head by defining exactly what the issue is.

Overall I'm leaning towards A. I think it's better for the story overall - A is the main protagonist with B as a secondary (but very interesting and quite beloved) protag. I think it's better for the whole arc that it happens from A's perspective.

I wrote about a thousand words of B's storyline tonight and I think the key thing is that I can make their motivations and thoughts in that moment quite clear from what they're thinking and feeling in the lead up to the event in question. I'd love to explore their relationship afterwards, although unfortunately A becomes a bit of a hermit for a few months and B flees the country. But I would be revisiting B's perspective again after the fact before they flee.

Unfortunately I don't think a midquel would work, although honestly I'd love to do a whole book from B's perspective, just probably not this story as the story belongs to A. Who knows, maybe I'll write a similar character some day.

This isn't to say I've completely decided, so feel free to keep those opinions rolling in!

Thanks to all <3
"Stella. You were in my dream the other night. And everyone called you Princess." -Lauren2010
  





User avatar
472 Reviews



Gender: Male
Points: 25
Reviews: 472
Wed May 17, 2017 4:26 pm
Lightsong says...



Write story from the PoV of someone who's more important, I guess? Like, A's definitely have an active role in the story, but in moments where it's B who's in the picture and not A, using B's PoV is better.

Also, you said B's a second protag, so they must have a lot of screentime, which doesn't necessarily mean having their PoV so much as having their presence as just equal in importance with A.

And that is all I can say. Hope it helps. Bye. :D
"Writing, though, belongs first to the writer, and then to the reader, to the world.

The subject is a catalyst, a character, but our responsibility is, has to be, to the work."

- David L. Ulin
  








Remember when dad's shoulders were the highest place on earth and your mom was your hero? Race issues were about who ran the fastest, war was only a car game. The most pain you felt was when you skinned your knees, and good byes only meant tomorrow? And we couldn't wait to grow up.
— Unknown