Shifting Point of View

Use this forum to discuss the September Book of the Month "Apollo's Raven" by Linnea Tanner.
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KMSingh
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Re: Shifting Point of View

Post by KMSingh »

I think the multiple viewpoints worked. It helped build tension, as well, by shifting away from scenes leaving us to anticipate what would happen next. It's a great strategy to master, but it's also something that can get out of control if the writer isn't careful. I think Tanner did a good job of it.
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Post by DC Brown »

I have seen the shifting point of view used in many books and it usually does work well. There is a trick some writers use that helps me... the change of character will be noted at the top of the page or the beginning of the chapter.
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Post by holsam_87 »

The shifting view point was integral in giving the full story of what was important.
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Post by Britty01 »

I think the shifting point of view worked well in this story.
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Post by haleygerstenberg »

Yeah, it's one of those narrative tactics that really just depends on the author's ability to execute it... this author seems to use it very well, makes there be a lot more depth to the storytelling
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Post by amandathebibliophile »

I loved the multiple perspectives. I don't always think this strategy works in books, but I think that in this case, it really worked. Because there were a lot of moving parts in this story, it was especially revealing and helpful to become aware of the inner thoughts of characters who were at odds with one another.
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Post by CommMayo »

haleygerstenberg wrote: 20 Sep 2018, 15:23 Yeah, it's one of those narrative tactics that really just depends on the author's ability to execute it... this author seems to use it very well, makes there be a lot more depth to the storytelling
I'm at a disadvantage because I reviewed the audiobook version of this novel. The narrator made it really had to figure out if there was a change in POV during the story. I'm glad to hear that those changes were made more apparent in the text version of the book.
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Post by KCWolf »

I have no problem with shifting points-of-view. It's an effective storytelling technique for this type of novel.
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Post by daydreaming reader »

Some times multiple perspectives can be confusing, but if it is done effectively, then it isn't a problem. I think the author did a good job.
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Post by joshfee77 »

Multiple perspectives can be good if done well, but it is difficult to create any sort of romantic suspense between two characters if we know what both of them are thinking. I like books where the entire narrative is limited to two or three POVs in total.
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Post by Linnea Tanner »

I initially wrote the book using the points of views of Catrin and Marcellus only, but eventually switched to multiple points of view based on feedback from my content editor and beta readers that the perspective of other characters were needed to clarify the political backdrop and conflicting interests.
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Post by DakotaA »

I don't mind shifting POV as long as each character has a unique voice and thought process. I have definitely read some books where I've found the character shifts annoying, but when done right I ultimately get really emotional and excited while reading multiple character POV books. I think it can be a great way for the reader to have lots of information, which can allow stories to have more depth.
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Post by Lucas Kalinic »

It gives credibility to the story. I had no problem with the shifting point of view. I like books with many characters as opposed to those centred on few characters.
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Post by Jkhorner »

Generally I'm not a fan of shifting POVs as it is difficult to do well. So many things can go wrong -- you forget who knows what, characters sound too much alike, you forget who's speaking, etc. In addition, it's much more realistic to get a story entirely from one perspective, if using first person narrative. We only ever perceive the world through our own eyes, so while shifting can be more interesting to the reader, I think it takes more creativity and skill for the author to limit himself to getting the story across accurately with just one perspective.
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Post by Azeline Arcenal »

I think this strategy definitely was an effective way to give credibility to the story. It gave us a way to see into the minds of the characters and can also clarify a few concepts that may otherwise be confusing for the reader.
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