Talking about the MC's parents in third person limited

Question · Feb 20, 2012

This is a bit more specific than what to call the MC's parents; I'm fine with with referring to my MC's parents as "(so-and-so)'s father" or "(so-and-so)'s mother".

There are times where I wind up with sentences like, "the blood drained from (so-and-so)'s father's face". They feel a little clumsy to me, but I don't know if it's just me. I usaully do my best to rework them -- for example, I might change that last example to "the blood drained from his father's face", but it isn't always easy (or even possible) to rearrange earlier sentences to make this kind of change possible.

Just wondering if it's worth the effort.

LadyA · Feb 20, 2012

"the blood drained from his father's face" seems fine to me. Stop worrying, and you'll be fine - that's what 2nd drafts are for

inspiredbymusic · Feb 20, 2012

What does the MC call his mother and father? Would it be possible to rewrite it as, "The blood drained from Dad's face," for example, since it's the MC's POV even though it's third person? So he would think of his father as "Dad" or "Pop" or whatever he calls him.

Springs · Feb 20, 2012

I always hate writing about parents for that very same reason. It really frustrated me because the MC's mother is a major character in my WIP. I usually used "her mother," although when it got to the point where I would be using that multiple times in one paragraph, I looked for other ways to describe her, such as "the older woman."

missesdash · Feb 20, 2012

It's funny no one has suggested "Mrs. so-and-so" it seems like the obvious choice to me (also avoids being repetitive). I sort of have this issue because, although I write in first, the parents in my novel aren't my MC's parents.

MrsBrommers · Feb 20, 2012

I'd go with a simple "his/her mother/father."

Becca C. · Feb 20, 2012

I just read a third-person POV novel where the MC's parents are major characters, and it took me most of the novel to realize that the third-person narrator called them Mom and Dad.

I think your goal should be to make it as seamless and invisible as possible. As long as their names don't stick out like a sore thumb, it's fine. But hey, calling them Mom and Dad would reduce your wordcount!

Question · Feb 20, 2012

I don't think calling them "Mr./Mrs. Something" would work, because it's close POV and my main character doesn't think of his parents that way. He's very respectful -- his parents are scary people. Mom and Dad sound quite awkward to me as well, for some reason :S

Becca C, can you tell me what book it was that used these? I'd like to read it to see how they can be used well

Still, I'm not really sure if Mom/Dad would work in the end. My MC's parents are assassins, so I don't know if something like, "Mom did a back flip over the fence" would be taken seriously

Becca C. · Feb 20, 2012

Ooops, can't believe I didn't say what book it was

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith. It was good.

Question · Feb 21, 2012

Becca C. said:
Ooops, can't believe I didn't say what book it was The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith. It was good.

Thanks

Talking about the MC's parents in third person limited

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LadyA

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inspiredbymusic

Springs

missesdash

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MrsBrommers

Becca C.

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Soon I will be invincible

Becca C.

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Soon I will be invincible