Point of view' is one of the first elements of storytelling an author has to decide upon

when writing fiction. POV, as it's often known as, is all about narrative voice: who’s
telling your story, and how is it being filtered to the audience? Telling your story in
the first, second, or third person will affect how it unfolds, its mood and tone, and
many other aspects of the storytelling process. They can all be successful — but not
all of them will be right for your story. 

To tell which point of view is being used, identify the most commonly used pronouns
in the piece:

Third person uses he/she/they: “They had decided to have breakfast tomorrow

morning, but she wasn’t invited."

Second person is told through you: “You crack open the door of the mansion, and you
find a woman sitting alone on a chair.” 

First person employs I or we: “When I heard her name, I felt a strange sensation in

my stomach.”

This guide will look at the major types of points of view and provide examples that
will help you understand them better. Let’s get started.

First person

A first person narrative is common to all of us and relatively intuitive to write

because it’s how we tell stories in everyday life. It’s typical for a first person narrator
to be the protagonist of a story, like Holden Caulfield in JD Salinger’s Catcher in the
Rye. An example would be a sentence with first person pronouns, such as:

“Bring me the prisoner,” I told my chief of police.

First person can create intimacy between the reader and the characters, granting us
access to their emotions, psyches and inner thoughts. It’s no surprise that it’s often
used for coming-of-age stories where explicitly emotional themes of angst and
isolation come to the fore.

The drawback is that having a single narrator can be limiting to the scope of a story.
The reader can only know what the narrator knows. It’s also said that a first person
narrator is biased, but of course, unreliable narrators can be intentional and
fascinating literary projects in themselves. 

In Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games, we follow our young narrator, Katniss

Everdeen, as she volunteers in place of her sister for the Hunger Games — a televised
dystopian event involving tributes ‘fighting’ to the death in a dangerous public arena.
Throughout the trilogy, we hear things from Katniss’s perspective. It gives us a sense
of her inner thought processes as she experiences (and is often the center of) life-
changing events for her and those around her.

Flowers for Algernon is an example where plot detail can be limited by a first-person
narrative:

As you can see, Keyes made a daring choice by narrating his story through Charlie
Gordon, a student who hasn’t quite got to grips with spelling and grammar yet. It
makes the text a bit disorienting, which might be a turn-off for readers desiring, clear,
uncomplicated prose. However, it is a popular way to fully immerse readers in the
psyche of the protagonist and initiate some character development using the book's
actual format — not just description.

Irvine Welsh cult classic Trainspotting also found great success, and it’s written
entirely in a working-class Edinburghian dialect. Despite using vocabulary, phrases,
and syntax that were unfamiliar to much of his readership, Welsh’s brilliant
storytelling submerged his audience in the community and events he was describing.

Second person

Second person narratives are less common. It’s all about putting the reader directly in
the headspace of a particular character: either the protagonist or a secondary figure.
The pronouns associated with second person include you, your, and yours, as in:

You instruct the chief of police to bring the prisoner to your office.

Of all the POVs, this is the least popular — mainly because it requires such a
large suspension of disbelief on the part of the reader. When executed well, it can
appear impressive and technically accomplished. However, it tends to be more suited
to shorter, lyrical pieces of writing (like poetry), or as a means to provide variety in a
longer novel that has chosen a different POV as its basis.

N.K. Jemisin's The Fifth Season is an example of how second person narratives can
draw a reader into the story.

This sci-fi fantasy thriller tells the story of Stillness, an alternate world plagued by
constant seismic activity. The plot hinges upon the Sazne people, who aren’t quite
sure how to look after a planet that is causing them turmoil, despite harnessing the
power of ‘oregenes’, people born with an ability to control the environment.

Only one section of this book is written in second person — it arguably

works because the whole story isn’t using this narrative, which can be alienating if
overdone. Here, though, it’s an interesting and compelling addition, and very
effective in eliciting an emotional response. 

Alternatively, Jay McInerney Bright Lights, Big City shows how second person

narratives can provide an unusually direct reading experience:

Bright Lights, Big City follows a magazine fact-checker at a magazine living in the

1980s New York City fast lane. It’s a high octane, fast-paced read about a lifestyle
most people don’t experience first hand, which is perhaps why McInerney opted for
second person POV. It makes for a refreshing change from what is typical in modern
classics like this one.

Third person (limited)

Everyone’s read a third person limited narrative. This POV uses third-person
pronouns such as “he” and “she” to relate the story:

“Bring me the prisoner,” she told her chief of police.

Third person limited is where the narrator can only reveal the thoughts, feelings, and
understanding of a single character at any given time — hence, the reader is “limited”
to that perspective. For instance:

“She couldn't tell if the witness was lying.”

In this example from Eleanor & Park, author Rainbow Rowell builds intimacy
between the reader and her characters with a third person limited narrator.

In this excerpt, we’re presented with the perspective of Park, a music-obsessed, semi-
reclusive "boy at the back of the bus," who’s about to fall head over heels in love
with Eleanor. Park is trying his best to blend into the background, and we get a fuller
picture of his withdrawn nature via his inner monologue. 

Eleanor & Park is a romance novel — a genre that limited third person is great for:
giving only one side of a will-they-won’t-they story is a brilliant way to add intrigue
and suspense. This element of ‘not knowing’ is what makes love in real life so
anguish-inducing too, right?

Similarly, JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series shows how third person narratives have

mainstream appeal:

As you can see in the excerpt, third person limited POV is clear and effective, which
makes it a popular way to tell a story. Harry Potter has a dedicated fanbase the world
over in part because the character of Harry Potter was so well developed, as the third
person limited POV fostered an emotional closeness between him and the readers.
Third person (omniscient)

Third person omniscient is a little different. As you might be able to tell, this type of
narration is “all knowing” — they’re not just limited to one character’s perspective
and information, but instead can reveal anything that is happening, has happened, or
will happen in the world of the story. For example:

He thought the witness was honest, but she didn't think the same of him.

It’s a popular point of view because it allows a writer to pan out beyond the
perspective of a single character. That means new information (beyond the
protagonist’s comprehension) can be introduced, while establishing a similar level of
intimacy to that of a first person POV.

Terry Pratchett’s Reaper Man shows how third person omniscient narratives can

establish a unique voice:

In the passage above, Pratchett describes an element of Discworld lore and provides
an additional footnote, adding a playful dimension to his work. That this writing is
unencumbered from a character’s narrative means the narrative can ‘break away’
from the action and provide a commentary on events. 

Howl’s Moving Castle also demonstrates how third person omniscient can easily
convey new information:

Lots of books choose third person omniscient as their go-to — because you can pan
into the finer details of a story or character, and pan out to the bigger picture,
revealing important information and events that might be outside the protagonists
comprehension, but add rich texture to a plot. For works of fantasy like Howl’s
Moving Castle, this is really helpful — world-building necessitates rich descriptions
of the appearance, values and lore of the fantasy world, and it can seem unnatural for
this to come all from a single character.

Common POVs in popular genres

When certain POVs are common in a genre, there tends to be some kind of logic
behind it. For example, modern detective novels rarely have omniscient narrators,
because the fun of reading a detective story is in attempting to solve the mystery
alongside the protagonist. 

Alternatively, Young Adult novels are often in the first person — these books tend to
be more introspective and protagonist-oriented because they express personal
coming-of-age experiences, and therefore suit a POV that allows the main characters’
voices to come to the fore — emulating the confessional tone of teenage diaries. So,
when writing a novel, it’s wise to think about your chosen genre and what type of
POV it might work well with. Here are a few examples of genres with common
viewpoints:

Young Adult — First person is popular, but third person limited is also common

Epic Fantasy — Third person omniscient and limited

Mystery and Thriller — Third person limited

Romance — First person and third person limited

Drama — all POVs common