: Re: If a main character is writing the story, can I change who writes the story in the next chapter? I’m trying to write my first novel and I have come across an issue which I feel like it

@Kaufman555

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I have personally never been "confused" by a shift in POV – have you? Despite the constant alerts that a new POV will befuddle readers, I'd challenge anyone with that advice to produce an example where they were actually confused.

The real issue is not that readers are too stupid (can they follow a plot or a character arc? Are you avoiding big words?), its that the writer has set up a rule of a limited perspective only to immediately break it. Readers will not be confused by a POV shift if they have ever watched television or a movie in their lives, since 1-perspective programs are extremely rare. More likely they will see it for what it is: the author has written a convoluted plot that needs explanation rather than allowing the protagonist (and readers) to figure it out through events in the novel.

Flipping POV to another character so you can put an eye-witness in the room is the worst reason to shift perspective. A better solution is to fix the plothole, or to work within the limits of first-person.

Jumping POV works when each POV character is part of an ensemble, and each has their own development arc, and a unique perspective on the situation so their commentary and ideas contribute meaningfully to the whole. Or, each POV personifies an idea or political faction that has been condensed into one character to give that perspective a voice. Is the villain "sort of right" and the hero "sort of wrong"? Do their emotional arcs mirror? Are they more alike than different? What are we learning through this particular POV that will surprise the reader and enrich the story? Maybe there are no heroes or villains, just a complicated situation that looks very different depending on which side you're on.

Like Chekov's gun, adding additional POVs is a promise to the reader that this perspective will be equally important, and will pay off as a well-developed character in its own right.

As always with these POV questions, please read some Jane Austen to see how a master jumps seamlessly from POV to POV – even minor and throw-away characters, often over 1 or 2 sentences without ever confusing the reader. Authors do not need to set off signal flairs to warn readers in advance that they have changed POV, they just need to understand their characters so each voice is clear.

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