View Point Character

This the person through whom the story will be told. Often but not all the time the view point character is the protagonist. The choice of your view point character will influence how the reader seas the story. A child and an adult will not see a death in the family the same way. A woman and a man will not see a case of infidelity in the same way. The VP character can be the difference between people siding with your theme or thinking of you as preachy.

The viewpoint character has to be someone who;

a)      Has the most to lose

b)      Is the most interesting and the reader can relate to them. People sympathize with people who have rounded characters and are going to grow with the story. Even the villain can be a VP character especially if you integrate some back-story that explains to the reader what their motives were.

c)      Is present during the action scenes other wise what’s the point.

d)      Is involved in the action or is doing the action. An observer won’t be as invested in a car chase as the person who is being chased. 

e)      Will be around the plot for a lot longer than that particular scene. By giving him/her a voice you are allowing us into the deeper recesses of the personality. There’s no need to get so up close and personal if you’re not going to let us enjoy him/her for sometime. The view point character must be someone who’s actions/crisis will be resolved by the end of the story.

Single VP Character

When a writer uses a single VP character it means that there is a consistent viewpoint throughout the story whether it is in first person or third person narrative. Short fiction works and Children’s stories will often feature just one viewpoint character to allow them connect with that character completely. It is thus suitable for works with less than twelve characters and a fairly liner plot.

Using a single VP could cause the reader to feel a little bit claustrophobic because they are stuck in the head of one person the whole time plus they are restricted from the motivations of the other characters.

Multiple VP Characters

In this case the VP character switches from scene to scene. The multiple VP is used in longer works where a Single VP will become monotonous. It is also used to introduce danger that the main protagonist isn’t aware of or to present a different viewpoint of the same situation.

Despite the freedom that multiple view points offer, resist the urge to have too many two to four characters is often enough to move the plot of the book. An unlimited number of VP characters decreases the intimacy between your character and the reader and thus the emotional impact of your story.

Make sure that the scenes that the protagonist has the floor are the most compelling and emotional ones. You don’t want the audience rooting for the bad guy because when you were there you did such a good job of explaining his motivations that the reader now feels like he really should be allowed to get away with stealing the crown jewels.

Try to maintain a consistent pattern of switches of POV. Do not switch viewpoints in the middle of a scene. Head hopping jars the reader out of their comfort zone and they have to readjust their emotions to suit the new guy. Instantly the connection you had tried so hard to create is broken. Instead switch at the beginning of a fresh chapter, a break within a chapter or a scene. When switching viewpoints make sure it is obvious from the first line who your view point character is at a particular point.