Using Multiple Points of View: When and How Is It Most Effective?

multiple viewpoints
Photo credit: silentinfinite via Visual Hunt / CC BY-NC-SA

Today’s guest post is an excerpt from Writing the Intimate Character by Jordan Rosenfeld (@JordanRosenfeld), published by Writer’s Digest Books.


Some stories require greater scope, more voices, or a different context than can be delivered through the eyes of one protagonist. When you find this to be the case, consider using multiple viewpoints. However, you must think about several factors before launching into this greater undertaking.

In a book with co-protagonists, each character should get approximately equal story weight. In other words, no one character is more important than the other, though one character’s story may seem to drive the action more than the others. Usually these multiples are written in an intimate POV, and each co-protagonist gets his or her own POV chapter or scene, in which we are privy only to that character’s thoughts and feelings. When your co-protagonists appear in a scene together, you still must choose which character’s POV to show it from. This has the potential to get confusing, so remember to imagine that each character possesses a movie camera. The POV comes from the person whose camera (mind) we’re looking through.

Using co-protagonists is different from omniscience, in which the POV can move between the heads of multiple characters in the same scene. Often in omniscient, the story has one protagonist, but the narrator still dips in and out of other characters’ thoughts, adding flavor, clues, and color. But ultimately we are still following only the transformational arc of one character.

Using multiple viewpoints can benefit your story in several ways. Keep in mind that when showing the vantage points of co-protagonists in one of the intimate POVs, you must start a new scene or chapter each time you switch.

5 reasons to use multiple viewpoints in your novel

Your story must be told from multiple perspectives. No matter how compelling one person’s journey, some stories are more deeply realized when several people tell the same story, adding different facets to the larger picture. Novels that have done this include All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, The Help by Kathryn Stockett, and The Hours by Michael Cunningham. This is especially true when each member in your cast of characters provides a unique piece to a larger puzzle: They might not understand each other’s lives, or they might clash against one another as a result of plot events.

Each character offers a unique plot thread or strand to the story. Multiple POVs only work when each POV character has a truly different story element to offer. They contribute new information, opinions, history, and clues that walk us deeper into the story’s heart.

Each character is compelling and has his own narrative arc. Sometimes writers confuse secondary or supporting characters for co-protagonists. A true co-protagonist must have his own narrative arc. He must be driven by his own unique goals and undergo a journey of transformation related to the larger plot. That’s a lot harder to do than just maintaining one character’s arc.

Your story spans a wide swath of time and history. Historical novels or stories that cover large time periods often feel limited when told in only one character’s POV. Since one character may also possess only a portion of the knowledge you need to convey, multiple characters can offer a feeling of depth and richness. But again, don’t bring in a new co-protagonist unless you are sure she is integral to the plot and carries her own arc.

Your book requires a quick and compelling pace. Multiple-character POVs have the power to make readers turn pages at a fast clip. As you end one character’s compelling scene at an unresolved point, you also create a yearning in readers to know what happens next. Repeat this technique with two or three characters and you create positive page-turning tension.

5 common problems with multiple viewpoints

Before you get too excited about creating a cast of co-characters, it’s wise to consider some of the potential pitfalls inherent to multiple POVs.

Readers don’t need the POV of the antagonist unless you’re redeeming that antagonist via his own narrative arc. I’ve read a lot of client manuscripts that try to “explain” the antagonist’s actions by offering several chapters from the antagonist’s POV. Unless you plan to redeem your antagonist so that he truly becomes a good, or better, person by story’s end, this is not necessary.

Don’t rehash the same scenes from different characters’ POVs. Don’t fall into the bad habit of writing the same scene from several characters’ viewpoints. Unless each rendition offers new and potent plot information, you run the risk of boring readers and slowing the pace of the narrative.

Don’t use new characters to offer narrative info dumps or explanatory plot information your protagonist doesn’t provide. A viewpoint character has to exist for his own story purpose, not just to offer up key plot explanations to carry your protagonist to the next stage of the journey.

Don’t add characters to create new subplots. Some writers feel that the best way to create a compelling plot is to include lots of subplots linked to more characters. More often than not, this leads to complications. The best plots arise from one character’s problem, past wound, or current challenge. Subplots must also rise organically, like spokes radiating from a central hub rather than a tangled web of overlapping and confusing stories.

The character arc of each co-protagonist should be distinct. New characters are exciting and fun to write, and it’s easy to dream up a team. But it’s a lot harder to develop a unique story arc for each character. If you can’t quickly think of how each character not only will play an integral part in your plot but also will experience a story-worthy transformation, you’re better off sticking with one protagonist.

Distinguishing multiple protagonists

To figure out how many co-protagonists to include in your story, analyze novels in your genre with multiple viewpoints. You’ll find that three is the average number of co-protagonists, but it’s by no means the rule; many novels have only two POVs. And while focusing on the struggles of more than three POV characters can cause readers to feel torn or confused, that’s not to say it can’t be done: Marlon James’s Man Booker award–winning novel, A Brief History of Seven Killings, has no fewer than thirteen protagonists spanning seven hundred pages. He pulls this off by putting the viewpoint character’s name at the top of each chapter so readers have no doubt whose POV they’re in, and he imbues each character with a distinct voice. However, I prefer books in which readers can tell who the POV character is by his distinct voice and personality alone.

writing the intimate characterTo determine how often to switch to a different viewpoint character, many writers use a formula wherein each co-protagonist gets a POV chapter or scene in a set rotating order: Protagonist A, Protagonist B, Protagonist C, all the way through the novel. Others might structure their scenes so one character appears more often than the others: A, B, A, C, A, B, A, C, or even A, A, B, C, A, A, B, C.

This is where scene trackers and plot outlines come in handy. When you’re juggling multiple protagonists, you will need more structural guidance to keep track of the arc and plot outcome for each one.


If you enjoyed this post, be sure to take a look at Writing the Intimate Character by Jordan Rosenfeld.

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Florence Osmund

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on POV. I agree with your rational as to when to use multiple viewpoints, but what I see all too often in books is head-hopping, when the narrator switches from one POV to another in the same scene.

Some editors don’t seem to have a problem with this. As a favor to a fellow author, I recently reviewed his latest release. It was a good book—a well-structured and creative plot, deftly-formed characters, engaging writing style, and obviously professionally edited. But the POV was all over the place. When I asked him about it, he said his editor hadn’t mentioned a problem with his changing viewpoints.

I have also read some high-profile books that were written in weird combinations of POVs that made the narrative confusing, and still managed to be best-sellers.

I’m confused as to what is acceptable today and what is not.

Jordan Rosenfeld

Hi Florence,
yes, not everyone who uses the omniscient–in which you have latitude to jump heads–does it well. But when it is handled well, it can be very effective. People’s confusion about POV is exactly why I wrote this book. I find that kind of use of omniscient works well when you have a book that’s epic in scope, historical, fantasy, etc, but you have to alert the reader very quickly that you’ll be doing it or it feels jarring.

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[…] Some stories require greater scope than can be delivered through the eyes of one protagonist—but consider these factors before creating multiple viewpoints.  […]

Chris

My current series “Ro and Jules Across Heaven and Hell”, features male and female protagonists who end up on opposite ends of the afterlife, and their adventures as they work their way towards each other. My first thought was to give them each equal time. About halfway through, I realized the book was going to be far too long for a YA adventure novel – and there were other issues as well. Splitting the characters equally made the resolution less personal for both, as the focus of each character arc is different.

For good or bad, I chose to make the male protagonist the main character in the first book. Even though she gets a significant amount of POV time, the story is still his. We get more of his backstory, and the antagonist is primed for his journey.

The female protagonist takes the focus in book 2, where we delve more deeply into her history and motivations. And again, even though he gets a lot of time in book 2, the resolution and antagonist are focused on her arc. For the remaining books in the series, the chapters should be evenly divided.

I also have a question about antagonist POVs. The plot takes five separate parties – the two protagonists, two antagonists (Archangel Gabriel and Lucifer), and a murky third party who sets off the inciting incident – and guides them from an initial chaos to the finale, when they finally all converge. While most of the POV’s belong to the to protagonists, I do seem to need POV’s from the other three to track their progress, and to foreshadow the increasing levels of danger the protagonists are in. There is no redemption for the antagonists in the first book. Does this sound like it would cause a problem?

If you have any thoughts on what I’m trying to do here, I’d appreciate hearing them. I haven’t found any other series that attempt some of these things, and it makes me a bit nervous.

Jordan Rosenfeld

You ask some good questions Chris. Some books do provide a chapter here and there from the Antagonist’s POV for the reasons you specified, to build tension, create foreshadowing, etc. However, remember that readers are primed to not care about the antagonist, so that chapter had better be a very compelling, taut scene that allows us to see mounting danger only–we don’t need a lot of character backstory (note that even in Harry Potter, Voldemort’s backstory only became relevant at the end of the series, when they needed to know it in order to destroy the horcruxes. And they were always shown IN SCENE). Also, in this case, I would make sure you’ve established a good number of chapters in protagonist’s POV so there’s no feeling that the antagonist is going to be given equal weight.

Second, while your protagonist doesn’t need a “redemption” in this book–your book has to feel complete, and stand-alone even if it is part of a trilogy. Some larger goal must be achieved by the end, even though it may take three books total to complete your character’s transformation.

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[…] simple! Have you tried that approach before? Did you succeed? This week, Jane Friedman talks about Using Multiple Points of View: When and How Is It Most Effective? If you’re just starting and still wonder about POVs, check the Complete Guide to Point Of […]

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[…] Using Multiple Points of View: When and How Is It Most Effective? (Jane Friedman) Some stories require greater scope, more voices, or a different context than can be delivered through the eyes of one protagonist. When you find this to be the case, consider using multiple viewpoints. However, you must think about several factors before launching into this greater undertaking. […]

Kathy Steinemann

Thanks, Jordan.

George R. R. Martin uses one POV per chapter in his Game of Thrones series, but still slips occasionally. I find his extensive use of internal monologue and “he knew” approach distracting. The sheer number of characters, if I hadn’t watched the HBO production, would be overwhelming. Having said that, I don’t know how else he could have told the story.

Valerie

In the manuscript I’m working on, I have one main character and about 2/3rds of the chapters are from her point of view, in limited third person. The rest are from her sister. I started the split when I realized I have some plot events that needed to happen simultaneously, but I’ve used it to develop her own internal struggles and highlight the continual misunderstandings between the two girls. I still wonder if it is weird to have 2/3rds of the book with one character and 1/3rd with another. Do you think co-protagonist chapters need to be split 50:50?

Jordan Rosenfeld

Valerie,
It can feel a little bit jarring to the reader, Valerie. Co-protags should be, if not 50/50, about 40/60. As long as the chapters are interspersed, however, so maybe you give the protagonist two chapters and the co-protag 1, AABAAB, it might be ok.

Valerie

Thanks. That’s something I’ll pay close attention to on my second draft.

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[…] grip the reader. Jordan Rosenfeld explores when to use multiple points-of-view characters and when to avoid it, K.M. Weiland reveals a surefire way to raise the stakes in your story, and C.S. Lakin shows how to […]

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[…] Jordan Rosenfeld: Using Multiple Points of View: When and How Is It Most Effective?  […]