How to Choose the Right POV for Your Novel
Recently, I had an epiphany about the book I’m writing. I’ve been knee-deep in revisions of my first draft for the past few months, and something about one of my main characters just didn’t seem to be clicking. Finally, I decided to try rewriting one of her chapters in first-person point of view rather than third-person limited, and lo and behold, everything suddenly fell into place. And so begins the arduous (but worthwhile!) task of shifting an entire novel from one POV to another.
Though late-stage changes like this can’t always be avoided, thinking critically about point of view early in the drafting process can help streamline your revisions later on and ensure you’re approaching your story’s perspective with care and intention. Here are a few things to think about when choosing a point of view for your novel.
What is point of view?
Point of view describes the position your story is told from. In other words, POV tells us about the narrator, their relationship to the story, and their level of knowledge about the characters in it. Here are the types of perspective commonly used in novels:
First-person limited: shows the action through the eyes of your narrator with use of the pronoun “I.”
Second-person: uses the pronoun “you” to address the reader directly. This style is relatively rare and typically has to be integral to the story concept in order to work.
Third-person limited: your narrator is not one of your characters, but they only have access to one specific character’s thoughts and inner world within a scene or chapter (or sometimes the whole book).
Third-person objective: an off-page narrator who doesn’t reveal any of the characters’ thoughts or emotions and instead recounts what they observe from a neutral standpoint.
Third-person omniscient: your narrator has an “all-seeing eye” and can provide insight into any of the characters’ thoughts as they see fit. This type of narrator is sometimes portrayed as a godlike figure.
Consider your goals
The first step to selecting the right point of view for your novel is reflecting on how you envision readers relating to your characters. For example, how much narrative distance do you want to leave between your reader and your character? The perspective you choose will have a significant effect on the level of intimacy you’re able to achieve. If you want your reader to feel closely connected to your character, with deep knowledge of their thoughts and emotions, first-person limited or close third-person limited might do the trick. If you want to hold them at arm’s length, you might be better off with third-person objective or third-person omniscient. Similarly, do you want your narrator or narrators to have a distinct, recognizable voice? Limited points of view are usually more suited to this style of writing.
Something else to consider is how and when information will be revealed to your reader. This can be especially crucial for genres like mystery and thriller that rely on tension and suspense to drive the story forward. In these genres, an omniscient narrator might not always be the best option because it provides the reader access to information your characters likely don’t have. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but it will require precision and careful consideration to ensure your POV is not doing you a disservice.
If you have multiple POV characters, keep in mind that they may not all need to use the same narrative style, and in fact their stories may be better served by different POVs. While one character may feel best suited to first-person narration, another might feel most authentic in third-person limited. Just make sure any shifts in POV are clear to the reader so they can keep track of whose head we’re in at all times (we’ll talk more about this in a few paragraphs).
Trial and error
One of the best ways to find the right POV for your novel is by sampling your options. If a particular chapter or scene has been tripping you up, experiment with rewriting that same section in a different narrative style. You might find (as I did in my book) that the writing suddenly feels more natural after shifting into a different point of view. This type of trial and error could also help you realize that it might not specifically be the POV that’s keeping you stuck. For example, first-person might be working just fine, but a scene may actually be more effective if told from a different character’s viewpoint. When in doubt, shifting the perspective can reveal a lot about what’s going on under the surface of your story, even if you don’t end up going with that POV when all is said and done.
Check out your comps
When you’re on the fence about which perspective to go with in your book, it can sometimes help to look to similar titles in your genre. Studying comparable titles can give you a sense of what type of perspective your target audience is more likely to connect with. Or, if you find you’re not connecting with a character in a comp title, thinking about the POV might help you pinpoint why. Now, there’s no hard-and-fast rule that says certain POVs are a requirement in certain genres, but reading with your writer hat on — that is, reading to understand how a story is put together and why it works or doesn’t work — can provide valuable insight to apply to your own use of POV.
Beware of head-hopping
Going into a draft without a clear goal for your POV can leave you at risk of head-hopping, when the narration jumps around between different characters’ thoughts and emotions within the same scene. It’s important to note that head-hopping is distinct from an omniscient point of view, where the narrator relates the story to the reader from their own detached perspective. In contrast, head-hopping takes on a particular character’s voice, if only briefly, and may seem to stay in one character’s POV for much of the narration with only occasional jumps into other characters’ heads. This can quickly get confusing for the reader and may even make it more difficult for them to truly connect with your characters.
The key to avoiding head-hopping is making you’re approaching your POV with intention. If you want to tackle an omniscient point of view, take some time to consider your narrator’s voice and purpose in the story. Does the narration truly need to be omniscient in order to work? Be sure to read examples of omniscient narration to help you get a handle on the distinctions between this style of narration and third-person limited.
Overall, which point of view to choose comes down to your goals and vision as the author. Only you can decide which POV is the “right” one for your story. The good news is, if you decide the POV you’ve chosen doesn’t quite fit, you can always choose a new one (even if it takes a bit of work to switch over).
