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McAnally's (The Community Pub) => Author Craft => Topic started by: ItsallSuesfault on December 27, 2011, 09:09:01 PM
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Ok, so I'm writing my novel in third person perspective, but in part of it a character "takes the story over" and it's in first person, can I do this or is there a rule against it?
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Why should there be a rule about it? I mean, sure it is probably going to be a bit harder to write than sticking to one perspective, which means there is more chance to screw it up, but that does not mean you absolutely can not do it.
The most important question I would ask is why. Why do you feel this particular character should get a different perspective than the rest? If it is justified, go for it. If you just want to do it because you could, then you should probably think it over again. A justification would probably be, if the story is largely from this characters point of view, but you want to show parts of the story where the character isn't involved. So basically a first person story with cut-scenes. Whatever your reasoning, you should be consistent, so if this character appears, the whole thing should be first person. If he isn't there, go back to third. Otherwise it is going to be way way confusing, I believe.
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One of my finished novels, the one I'm currently trying to find an agent for, is primarily in first person, with occasional chapters in third person from the POV of the second protagonist. AFAIK, there is no rule against this; there may be varying opinions as to whether it "works" or not. In this instance, it was a necessary device to get more action into the story, as the principal narrator is mostly stuck behind a desk and lacks the skills to be a person of action. As long as you have a good reason for it, it should be okay.
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There's a young adult series, many books long (10+) by DJ MacHale - The Pendragon Series. This series has the main characters chapters in first person, while the supporting characters chapters are in third. You are safe. 8)