Writing Topic #3 Narrators

Introduction

I want to thank Don from Sideon's Sanctuary. As our Guest Blogger, he was willing to tackle the next subject of narrators. If you remember from the last topic, I mentioned that the narrator is NOT the author's voice. In this topic, Don will explain more of what a narrator does for your story.

I have been reading Don's blog for almost six months now. And, where his writings are concerned, I have serious blog envy. :-)

General Topic

Identifying the narrator, whom describes any circumstances or events (including any limits placed on their knowledge) he or she is a part of, is identifying a story's point of view. The narrator is the one from whose perspective the story is told.

For example, the author Mark Twain differentiates himself from the main character (and speaker) in the first lines of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:

"You don't know about me, without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, but that ain't no matter. That book was made by Mr. Mark Twain, and he told the truth, mainly. "

Not every narrator is in the center of a story's action. Some narrators play no active parts in the stories they tell. A narrator's knowledge might range from all-knowing to total ignorance. Following is a rough list of narrator and point of view possibilities.


Narrator Participant (Writing in the First Person)

1. a major character
2. a minor character

Narrator Non-Participant (Writing in the Third Person)

3. all-knowing (seeing into any of the characters)
4. seeing into one major character
5. seeing into one minor character
6. objective (not seeing into any characters)


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Exercises

1. Here's a short exercise to help you sense what a difference a point of view makes. Write a short statement (less than 100 words) from the p.o.v. one ONE of these characters: Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek), Gandalf (Lord of the Rings), Buffy (Vampire Slayer), or Jean Grey (Xmen).
2. Write a brief (less than 250 words) narrative account of a defining moment in your life from two different and contrasting points of view. Example: buying your first car, told first in first person, and then in 3rd person from the salesman's p.o.v. Another example: meeting a significant other from your point of view and then from their point of view.
3. Adopt the p.o.v. of a naive and innocent OR educated and experienced commentator and discuss one topic: a ban on spam (the meat), legalizing prostitution, energy company profits, or a proposed new color for wedding dresses.
   

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Tuesday is the magic writing day. See you then.

Writing Exercises #2

This picture is of the main gate and clock tower of a castle in Spangenburg, Germany. Under the wooden bridge is a deep moat with sheep grazing on the grass. In its day, this castle protected its citizens from armies and even bandits. Many of the Hessian soldiers that came to America were from this region.

One of the things I learned in Germany is that creativity cannot exist without form as this castle cannot exist without its beams and underlying structure. Some of the best poetry needs meter and rhyme to bring out its beauty. Some of the best prose needs the structure of essays and stories.

So writing techniques help the writer conceptualize what he/she wants to say. The techniques are the bones (structure) of the story, while ideas (characters) are the flesh.

Here are the brave souls who contributed to the last writing exercise:

Cynthia: Each night I would tuck my four brothers into bed. ...

Eric: Nothing in this life is quite as good as the delicacy that is Wendy's fries dipped in Frosty.

La: Doctors don't know EVERYthing

Sideon: Door

You are welcome to practice again.

Long Weekend

Due to the long weekend of travelling to my brother's wedding reception in Las Vegas, which was a total of 16 hours of driving, and due to a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, I am posting the writing exercises on Wednesday.

So that gives you another day to play. :-)

Writing Topic #2 POV

In "Writing Topic #1 POV" I wrote about the basic differences between first person and second person. I also pointed out the advantages and disadvantages of both of these POVs. Today's topic will be about the third person point of view.

I want to mention that in fiction the POV is NOT the author's voice. It is the voice of the narrator (or entity), who is responsible for telling the story.

General Topic

Third person uses the pronouns he, she, him, her, his, hers, it, its they, them, and their.

Third person is divided into three categories.

• Third Person Omniscient
• Third Person Objective
• Third Person Limited

Third person is the most common POV used in the thrillers, suspense, and mystery genres.

Third Person Omniscient

This point of view was very popular in the nineteenth century. Charles Dickens and Thomas Hardy used this voice to create metafiction. In third person omniscient, the narrator knows everything about the characters (actions, emotions, and thoughts) and can shift from character to character. The narrator also has an authorial prescence within the story. In nineteenth century fiction, the narrator provided the morals within the story.

In modern omniscient writing, we have a few rules about shifting from character to character.

• Don't shift characters in the middle of a chapter. Give each character his/her own chapter.
• If you must shift characters in a chapter, put a double white line between the paragraphs from one character to another. This white spacing helps the reader change with the narrator.
• If you shift too often, you might lose the reader.
• Some writers (such as Norah Roberts) ignore these rules and are still successful.

In this POV, you can narrate information that would not normally be known by your character. For instance, Mark Twain had lived in Carson City after he was thrown out of Virginia City. He had used much of his personal influence to build the First Presbyterian church. Mary did not know the history of this church. She thought it was an eyesore and needed to be leveled.

Third Person Objective

This POV is used mainly in film and drama. In third person objective, the narrator can only show what is seen and heard by a character, who is usually the main character.

The reader has to interpret the feelings and thoughts of the other characters by what they say or do.

• Third person objective is good for any visual media.
• In print, the writer needs to be able to describe facial, body, and other types of description.
• The writer cannot use thoughts or feelings, unless the character vocalizes them. No dipping into the character's head.

Third Person Limited

In this POV, the narrator follows one character, but he/she/it can show this character's thoughts, feelings, and actions. Third person limited is the most used POV in literature today.

• Narrator follows one character
• Show characters thoughts, feelings, and actions
• See other actions through the eyes of the one character

More Reading--

Defining Point of View-Third Person

Exercises

• First person to third person: Take an old story and rewrite it. If it is first person, then write it in third person. If it is third person, then write it in first person. Limit your pronouns. Post both stories in your blog. This exercise is more challenging than it seems. Editing in this manner helps you to play with a story and bring out new colors and characteristics. It also distances you (the author) from the story so that you are more objective about your characters and plot.
• Trickster: Create a narrator that observes the action around him/her, but knows more than he/she lets others know. This narrator can be a clown, trickster, or someone who stretches the truth. Have fun with this exercise.
• Omniscient Viewpoint: Take a paragraph from one of your old stories and rewrite it using third person omnisicient. Add an authorial voice within the description. Here is an example from French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles:

Charles detected, under the American accent, views very similar to his own; and he even glimpsed, though very dimly and only by virtue of a Darwinian analogy, that one day America might supersede the older species. I do not mean, of course, that he thought of emigrating there, thought thousands of poorer English class were doing that every year.

Pick one of these exercises or do one of your own. I will post my exercises on Tuesday. Have a great weekend.

Tuesday's Writing Exercises #1

Good day folks. So today is the day for the first exercise. Just put your link in the comment section. If you want edits or critiques, put a request on your blog under your exercise.

As for me, I am sweltering in Northern Nevada. We have a few fires, but at this time not as many as California. Good luck to all. Hopefully you are cooling under the air conditioning.

Writing Topic #1 POV

Before I start on this week's topic, I would like to thank Eric for my banner and C.L. Hanson for my favicon. Being of the visual blockhead tribe, I really really appreciate the help.

General Topic

POV or point of view is how the writer tells the story. There are three types of POV, which include the following:

• First Person
• Second Person
• Third Person

In this topic, we will discuss first person and second person. All of these types of POV have advantages and disadvantages. Some of these types are better than others. Before you write your story, poem, or essay, you need to decide which POV will be best for you.

First Person

First person uses the pronouns I, me, my, we, and ours.

The advantage of using first person is that it is a very intimate style of writing. You are already used to thinking in first person. For example, I went to the store and bought a red dress for the prom. Or, I went to the Grand Canyon for my summer vacation. Both of these sentences are examples of first person.

The disadvantage of first person is that you have to write from the viewpoint of the character that you pick as your protagonist. If your protagonist has never seen a certain building, you cannot describe it until he/she sees it. You can see inside your protagonist, but unless the antogonist tells his/her side of the story, you cannot show his/her emotions.

1. First person seems easier to write because that is how we view the world.
2. First person keeps you inside ONE character.
3. First person gives you intimacy with one character, but does not provide understanding outside the one character.

First person fiction writing loses half of the advantages of third person writing. But, a well-written first person narrative can pull the reader into the life of the character.

Second Person

Second person writing uses the pronouns you and yours.

It is hard to keep readers interested in second person writing because it begins to sound like commands or instructions. And in fact, second person is best used with instructions. For instance, stand up, sit down, brush your teeth. These commands are all in second person.

1. Second person is used for instructions and commands.
2. Second person distances the reader from the action because it makes him/her feel that you are telling him/her what to do.
3. Second person is rarely used in fiction.

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Next weeks topic will be about third person POV.

For more information about POV, go to the following links:

1. Writing Styles for Fiction: Which Voice to Use by Kenneth R. Eaton
2. What point of view? by Callum Shakespeare
3. Who is Telling the Story, and Why?

Exercises

1. Reluctant First Person: Write a first person story where you use a limited amount of the pronoun I, me, and my. Your narrator can either be in the middle of the action or observing the action. The point of this exercise is that your narrator needs to describe action, feelings, and personal understanding of events around him/her. 300-600 words.
2. Imperative Second Person: Write a second person story using only imperative sentences such as "Stand on your balcony and watch two people steal plates from a car. Walk down the stairs to confront them. Call the police instead," etc. Even though you is not stated, it is still second person because you is implied. 300-500 words.

You can either do one or both of the exercises. On Tuesday, I will post my writings. Next week we will continue with the POV third person.

About This Site

Writing is a combination of the mundane and the sublime. I never knew the importance of food until I could not eat. I never knew the importance of words until I could not write.

This site was started because several internet sites discuss creativity in generating ideas, but very few sites deal with the actual craft of writing fiction. Scrambled Sage on Toast is a place for writers to work on their technique and creativity.

Like any other art, it takes practice to become a writer. In this blog, I will discuss each element of fiction and then give an exercise. You as the writer will write. If you would like edits or critiques, please put your request on the bottom of your finished exercise. Link your blog to the comment section.

If you have any subject requests, you can send an email to cynbagley@hotmail.com.

And, most importantly, the essays and exercises will be posted on Friday and I will post my finished exercise on Tuesday.

Cheers,

Cyn

First post on POV "point of view" scheduled for Saturday July 15th.