Point of Preference

I often say that I’m a literary omnivore—I’ll read almost anything. But, of course, even with tastes as broad as mine there are exceptions. There are biases. And we all have them, even if we don’t hold a single genre above all others.

I’ve been thinking about a specific preference of mine while reading Leigh Bardugo’s excellent Six of Crows. The story is told in a multi-point-of-view third person. Meaning, each chapter is told in the third but with a skew toward one character or another, and, in this case, the character’s name is at the top of each chapter.

Taken all together, Six of Crows has that sort of dramatic irony that is completely delicious. Yes, delicious. Because it’s “meaty” when we get so see so many sides at once. For example, this is exactly why the Game of Thrones books are so enticing—you are constantly getting another side of a very intricate story.

When it’s done well, multi-POV third can feel like a movie, because that’s sort of how it’s written—a collection of scenes from different view points that make a full and captivating story when combined.

Now, back to biases. I realized when I was reading this book that I almost never prefer books from third person that have a single point of view. Maybe this is bias from writing exactly that way when I was in newspapers. But most of the time, I just think, “Why not just write this in first person?” I feel like third person’s greatest benefit is the ability to have the reader see more than one side of the story. And if there’s one problem it’s that the voice can feel distant as compared to first person.

All that said, it’s not that I don’t like single-POV third person—in fact, if it’s done well, I won’t notice the distance and I’ll feel as close to the main character as if they were telling their story in the first person. (Shout out to my Pitch Wars mentees who have achieved this!)

Do you have a preferred POV? Is it different for writing as for reading or are they the same?

Scene Transitions: A Newfound Respect



Several months ago while watching the news on television, I learned a lesson about the importance of transitions.

It had been sixteen days since Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 mysteriously disappeared. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib announced, “It is, therefore, with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, Flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.”

I watched in dismay as a major network played video of family members shrieking, crying, with some being carried out on stretchers. My heart went out to the people who just heard their loved ones were gone forever. I could only imagine their shock and pain at hearing these words.

This tragic scene immediately segued into an image of singer Shakira dressed in a skimpy belly dancing outfit gyrating to upbeat music in a fantasy forest. (Presumably, the probiotics in yogurt kept her “regular” and, therefore, joyful.) Dumbfounded, I struggled to keep up with the abrupt change of topic and emotion.

What happened? Apparently, they forgot the transition and failed to give the viewer time to adjust. The news anchor could have said, “We’re pausing for a commercial break.” Or, they could have faded to a black screen for a few seconds with somber music playing.

Before this experience I didn’t give transitions much thought. However, I have noticed when they are absent. I once read a mystery where the main character was shot and in critical condition in one scene, but training for a marathon in the next one. I stopped reading to see if a page was missing or if two pages were stuck together.

But what is a scene transition? Fiction Editor, Beth Hill, wrote an insightful blog about Mastering Scene Transitions. Basically, a scene transition:

·         is not a scene, but the narration between scenes.

·         brings characters and readers to a new location, point of view, or time.

·         needs to identify place, time, and viewpoint character especially if there has been a change in any of the three.

·         is used for skipping unimportant events, periods of time, or to change location.

·         may be used to break tension or slow the pace.

·         can show a character’s change of heart or mind.

·         may be easily inserted at the beginning of chapters. However, you might need to change scenes within a chapter.

·         often utilizes the technique of “telling” not “showing” which is discouraged in writing, but useful for transitions.

·         can be as short as, “Meanwhile, back at the ranch,” or as long as a few paragraphs.

Also, Hill strongly advises against changing the point-of-view (POV) in the middle of a scene. She wrote that it’s confusing and could cause the reader to lose the connection with the viewpoint character. I remember reading a romance novel that switched from Jack’s POV to Sue’s in the middle of a love-making scene without the benefit of a transition. That was jarring! In my mind, Jack was caressing Sue’s face and toying with her rough, scruffy beard. It threw me for a loop and right out of the story. 

So, how do you determine the correct length for a scene transition? If the transition is too long it becomes boring. But if it’s too brief, the reader may become confused. I haven’t found a precise answer to that question. Perhaps this an area where the art and magic of writing (aka rewriting) takes place.

Do you consider transitions when you write?

Environmentalists?

There are times when the irony of the world—our government and our policies—takes my breath away. I’m a frequent visitor to North Carolina’s Outer Banks because I’m a beach bum. That’s where I am right now as you read this blog. I go there because I love the environment—the ocean, the beach, the birds, the fish, dolphins, the boats, the warmth of the currents coming from the Caribbean, the humidity, the sun and blue sky. It’s where I commune with nature calming the rage of living in Northern Virginia.

The beaches of the Outer Banks are governed by the National Park Service (NPS). The NPS is supported (especially in legal action) by environmental groups, such as, Defenders of Wildlife, the National Audubon Society, and the Southern Environmental Law Center. None of us who love the Outer Banks is against protecting the environment and the species dependent on this environment to survive. But, due to NPS’s restrictions, war has broken out on various issues between the NPS and the locals, who depend on tourism for their livelihoods.

The adage of “if you ain’t for ‘em, your against ‘em” seems to skew those outsiders who view the war. Locals are made to look like bloodthirsty rednecks with gun racks on the back window of their trucks, who don’t give a damn about the environment even though their ancestors came to work and stayed on the islands for the same reasons everyone goes to the Outer Banks—the environment. Locals support protecting endangered species, but they try to bring moderation to policies they feel are unreasonable and cut into everyone’s enjoyment of the beach.

One such policy requires people and other species to walk in the water rather than on the beach, if not you must levitate. During winter and spring, walking in the water can be a chilling experience. There is a “leave no trace” policy in force, which fails to recognize that the tide will wash away any horrible footprints left by visitors within twelve hours.

Another policy is predator management. It seems that the only animals the NPS wants to protect are birds. What the NPS perceives as predators to the birds are trapped and destroyed. Last year the NPS identified 263 animal species, which were either removed from the islands or destroyed (the term used is euthanized). In 2010, 594 animal species were treated to the same “best management practice.” These targeted animals included: raccoons, minks, foxes, coyotes, opossums, nutria (a beaver-like animal) and feral cats. The feral cats are taken to the SPCA. What happens to them later is your best guess.

There are those animals that are not intentionally trapped but end up in the NPS traps including, rabbits, crows and otters. Most are live caught and released, but some don’t survive, like in years past the Diamond Back Terrapin, a turtle “of concern” that inhabits the coastal regions of the eastern U. S. The traps cause blunt force trauma, killing the turtles. For 2011, the NPS changed the type of trap used to minimize destruction of this species.

I’ve spent extensive time on the beach, most of the protected birds’ habitat, in the last thirty years, and although some of these predator species are nocturnal, I’ve never seen any of these animals on the beach. That’s not to say that on occasion it doesn’t happen, like this day when one fox did go on the beach. (A small creature on the left looking at the ocean.)

Yes, those are NPS personnel with their guns drawn. Makes me wonder if we should drop the term environmentalist from our language.

The Island Free Press