Point of View (POV):
Perspective from Which a Story is Told
Point of view is all about who is narrating or telling a story. There are three main points of view (POVs) that a writer can use to narrate or tell a story.
- First person: I, me, myself (singular); we, us (plural)
- Tends to create less distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers.
- Tends to create less distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers.
- Second person: you, your, yourself
- Tends to create even less distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers because often the "you" is intended to make readers part of the story.
- Tends to create even less distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers because often the "you" is intended to make readers part of the story.
- Third person: he, she, they, them
- Tends to create more distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers because none of the characters are narrating their experiences--the third-person narrator is doing that for them.
- Tends to create more distance between the events and characters described in the story and readers because none of the characters are narrating their experiences--the third-person narrator is doing that for them.
POV Writing Prompts
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POVs: A More Complete Menu
The menu below is modified from Gotham Writers Workshop: Writing Fiction: The Practical Guide From New York's Acclaimed Creative Writing School:
- Types of First-Person POV
- Single Vision: follows one character narrating the story from their perspective
- Example: The Hunger Games
- Example: The Hunger Games
- Multiple Vision: follows several characters' perspectives as they narrate parts of the story from their different perspectives.
- Peripheral: another character, not the protagonist, is narrating the protagonist's story from their (the other character's) perspective.
- Example: The Great Gatsby (Gatsby's story is told from the first-person perspective of Nick Carroway)
- Example: The Great Gatsby (Gatsby's story is told from the first-person perspective of Nick Carroway)
- Unreliable First Person: first-person narrator who makes readers question whether or not the events being described really happened and/or happened in the way the narrator is describing them. These narrator's often try to convince you that you, the reader, should believe everything they're telling you.
- Example: “The Tell-tale Heart”
- Single Vision: follows one character narrating the story from their perspective
- Types of Second-Person POV
- Addressing your audience to make them a part of the story
- Example: “750 Words About Cancer”
- Example: “750 Words About Cancer”
- Narrating a story to another character
- Addressing your audience to make them a part of the story
- Types of Third-Person POV
- Single Vision: follows only one character's experiences and thoughts
- Example: much of the Harry Potter series is told via third-person singular vision
- Example: much of the Harry Potter series is told via third-person singular vision
- Multiple Vision: follows several characters' experiences and thoughts at different points (or event at the same points) of the story.
- Example: A Song of Ice and Fire
- Example: A Song of Ice and Fire
- Omniscient: the God-like narrator who knows everything about everyone in the story
- Example: Pride and Prejudice
- Example: Pride and Prejudice
- Objective: the reporter-like narrator who narrates the story in a very matter-of-fact tone
- Single Vision: follows only one character's experiences and thoughts