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working writer wending her way through the labyrinth that is self-publishing

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Write on...

The difficulties I was having with my story seem to have disappeared--at least for the moment. I'm so glad to have some inspiration again and that the story is moving forward! Several elements are about to collide and lead to the conclusion, but I don't want it to happen too fast!

How I solved my dilemma, which I've spoken about in previous blogs, (if you haven't been reading it was mainly lack of focus--a meandering quality that was getting tedious) was to add another POV. This is the first time I've written in the first person but the second POV is in third. This might sound weird but the main protagonist, Gertrude/Ciara, (I'll explain the names later) needed to be protected...after all it is her story. Adding another POV solved several problems. The main one was giving the reader a chance to understand what was at work in the mind of another major character--without that we can only see the story through Gertrude's eyes and after a while her internal dialogue becomes boring if there's no corroboration for what she's thinking! Does this make any sense? Another issue was setting and timing. The main character is in one place but major things are happening in another--things that are pertinent to the story arc. So now we have two stories happening simultaneously, with the very real possibility that they will soon collide. Another dilemma that was solved was my own interest. With the addition of another POV I'm excited again, my hands typing faster than my brain can work!

Now if I could only corral what my characters do--because they are beginning to go their own ways and do things that I didn't intend. I guess it's a small price to pay for forward movement. *sigh*

How do you solve these issues? Do you usually have one POV or do you have several?

I'd love to hear your thoughts! and thanks for reading....oh, and by the way, Gertrude doesn't like her name and so when the townspeople call her Ciara she is happy to change it! (more to that story but you'll have to read it after it's published)


2 comments:

  1. The writing is always the best bit - even the snags you can worry like a dog with a bone. Good luck Nikki. I'm glad things are moving. Ref pov I always have several. They offer more potential

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    1. thanks for reading and commenting, Mike...glad to hear you do several pov's--I've done more than one in 3rd but never a 1st and a 3rd in same ms...interesting....

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