In one of my chapters, I was told to temporarily switch the POV in the middle of it so that the shocked person's reaction could be shown from his head. I always thought that, once you come up with the POV person in a chapter, you stay with that person only. I understand why I got the advice, and I even kind of like it, but don't want to break any serious rule. Thanks.
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The most important rule is to do what works! Why not try it both ways and see which version you prefer? Which version do your beta readers prefer? Don't be afraid to experiment.
Maybe you can insert that part later? It adds to tension, at least. There's many novels I've read where I was eagerly turning pages to see how a non-POV character in one chapter reacted in a later chapter.
Thanks for the advice. In this case, I can't. A policeman finds a young man with a gun to his head, trying to kill himself and apprehends the gun, but he is never in the story again. I'm not sure where to go with this...thanks again.
Do it both ways and see which way you like.
Personally I'd stick with the POV character -- you can still develop the "other characters" through the POV character... I think the result could be more gripping than suddenly switching heads. The reason for a close 3rd limited is that the readers can identify with a character and go along with him. If you change, mid-scene, to a different character's head, even though you're trying to show what that character is thinking and hopefully make the story more gripping, the result could be opposite -- suddenly your readers are yanked out a stream of consciousness and they might say, why should I care about this other character? Especially if the character will not be there later on in the story, the effect could be even more jarring. Also, the head hopping (within a scene) do takes the readers off the page a little, because the readers have to switch gear as well -- now they're supposed to care about another character, instead of someone they've just followed...
That's just my preference.
Personally I'd stick with the POV character -- you can still develop the "other characters" through the POV character... I think the result could be more gripping than suddenly switching heads. The reason for a close 3rd limited is that the readers can identify with a character and go along with him. If you change, mid-scene, to a different character's head, even though you're trying to show what that character is thinking and hopefully make the story more gripping, the result could be opposite -- suddenly your readers are yanked out a stream of consciousness and they might say, why should I care about this other character? Especially if the character will not be there later on in the story, the effect could be even more jarring. Also, the head hopping (within a scene) do takes the readers off the page a little, because the readers have to switch gear as well -- now they're supposed to care about another character, instead of someone they've just followed...
That's just my preference.
Someone was telling me how you should absolutely never ever under any circumstances switch pov's in a story. This same person swore their absolute devotion to Orson Scott Card -- And I'm thinking "Haven't they read Ender's Game? Or were the paying attention when they did?"
Who told you to switch the POV?
If it's your editor or publisher, do it. They are after all paying you.
If it's your agent, consider it. They aren't paying you but they do know whereof they speak, usually.
Otherwise, think seriously about making changes to POV in the middle of a sequence.
If it's your editor or publisher, do it. They are after all paying you.
If it's your agent, consider it. They aren't paying you but they do know whereof they speak, usually.
Otherwise, think seriously about making changes to POV in the middle of a sequence.
That is a bad advice.
Never tell anyone to "never" do anything.
Switching POV (yes, even 1st person) is so common in fiction it's ridiculous to even suggest that.
Well, you usually shouldn't flip around from POV to POV inside one scene ("head hopping"), unless ... you're really good at it, and it works.
This type of thing HAS happened in a couple of novels I've read but the author switched POV between two characters and not three or four. Myself, I get annoyed by it, but it didn't make me put the book down. I think that, if done well, it can work.
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