Difference Between Viewpoints

Difference between viewpoints –This was the hardest thing for me to grasp as I started to write. I worked on this for a long time to conquer POV because viewpoint it can be very confusing. When you discuss viewpoint you are referring to how the story is told. You have to decide whether it will be told from a first person, third person omniscient, or third person limited. Those three are the main viewpoints that stories are told from. Each viewpoint has its pros and cons. The decision of what viewpoint to ell your story from depends largely on the type of story you’re attempting to tell, your writing style, and the message you wish to convey. If you want a personal more intimate story, first person is often the choice. Though many writers hate the use of first person as they claim it’s too repetitious and confining. (If you’re not familiar with stories told in this viewpoint check out Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Milhone Series.)

Personally I prefer third person omniscient The story can be told from the viewpoint of one character but can shift to another when your protagonist is injured or out of the scene and you need to story to carry on. Otherwise if your next scene jumps to what your character is seeing. Third person omniscient is harder because you must to tell the story from the viewpoint of several different characters and not confuse the reader.

If you choose this POV I would make one suggestion, read books written in this style. (Raymond E Fiest’s Riftwar Saga is a good example. Fiest uses the lives of multiple character to tell his tale.) Writers who use this technique usually change POV by starting a new chapter. This gives the reader a break in thought and it is less confusing.
Most writers prefer the third person limited the reason is simple. It is the easiest and most compelling viewpoint, in their opinion.

There is also second person viewpoint but rarely will you read a story or book told this way. Second person is the least commonly used POV in fiction, though there are a few examples. However, second person viewpoint does exist, so at least learn what it entails.

Second person point of view, the narrator tells the story to another character using "you"; The story is being told through the addressee's point of view. Tom Robbins's Half Asleep in Frog Pajamas is one example of a novel told in second person. Many of the stories in Lorrie Moore's book Self-Help are also written in the second person.
But the main thing is, once you start a story from one viewpoint stick with it. Otherwise you lose your credibility with the reader and most often will not find yourself published. Besides, it is confusing as a new writer to try and switch between viewpoints. However, seasoned pros often do this and do it well.

Pretend your POV character’s eyes are a camera This is the best way to phrase what I am trying to get across. It has to do with creating characters and setting. The first rule of creative writing is SHOW, DON’T TELL. Say your character enters a room for the first time. You want you reader to know what the character looks like, not by telling them specifically, but my mentioning things that they do and their body language, their habits–maybe they stumble, making them a clumsy person, or they could be cutting their eyes, which creates an aura of untrust – the way they are dressed, etc. This creates their personality for the reader without you having to explain the kind of person that they are. And you want the reader to feel like they are in the setting by describing the surroundings, much like they were watching a movie. You don’t want to go overboard by taking away from the character or the story, but mentioning things that are in the room, setting the scene, helps your reader visualize and makes the story real. A writer must convey what a person is thinking by showing emotions, like fear, anger, excitement. Through the use of facial expressions, body language and actions.

Avoid the use of purple prose – Wikipedia describes purple prose this way: "purple prose is a literary criticism. It is used to describe passages, or sometimes entire literary works, written in prose so overly extravagant, ornate or flowery as to break the flow and draw attention to itself. Purple prose is sensuously evocative beyond the requirements of its context. It also refers to writing that employs certain rhetorical effects such as exaggerated sentiment or pathos in an attempt to manipulate a reader’s response."

The lesson here is not to fall so in love with your own writing that you lose your reader. Taking advantage of apt metaphors and similes is great but use them sparingly, they are required, for great writing.

The advise given by Mark Twain in his letter to D.W.Bowser in 1880 is appropriate here. "I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English - it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in. When you catch an adjective, kill it. No, I don’t mean utterly, but kill most of them - then the rest will be valuable. They weaken when they are close together. They give strength when they are wide apart. An adjective habit, or a wordy, diffuse, flowery habit, once fastened upon a person, is as hard to get rid of as any other vice."

Thus we move on to the next tip:
Edit, edit, edit and edit some more. Different writers find different formulas for editing. Some edit as they go wanting the page finished before they move on to the next verses. Others insist that the only way they can work creatively is to just start writing. They let the words flow they go back and flush out the details. I work both ways but it will take a while to figure out what works best for your style. No matter what kind of editor you are, make sure of one thing, NEVER allow a story to contain misspelled words or wrong grammar. Also, punctuation and format are crucial to getting your story published. Start now at the outset and consider yourself a professional, Even if you haven‘t been published, act like a pro and you will become one.

 But the main thing I am talking about when I mention editing is getting rid of the fluff, the unnecessary words, characters, scenes, etc. Ever good writer creates several drafts of his or her work before they consider their story complete. Also after you have edited your story to the best of your ability have someone you trust else read your manuscript. Not someone who will tell you haw good it is but someone who will point out the weak or bad parts. I have found over time that I tend to read what I think I wrote and many times not what is actually on the page. Every great writer has an editor.

Rarely if ever will you hear of a writer, no matter how famous, who writes a story in one draft. Most writers have to create at least three or four drafts of a story before they are satisfied that it is right. Don’t be satisfied until it is.