POV Character

Head Hopping and Author Intrusion

In today’s Journal * Quote of the Day * Head Hopping and Author Intrusion * Of Interest Quote of the Day “Imagination will often carry us to worlds that never were. But without it, we go nowhere.” Carl Sagan Head Hopping and Author Intrusion First, these are two different problems. In today’s “Of Interest” there’s a link to an excerpt of a post about head-hopping. The post is by Susan DeFreitas. What Susan writes in her post, which is basically a response to a question, is probably good advice. To be honest, I didn’t read it. Just be sure to … Read more

The Journal: How to Indicate Unspoken Thoughts

In today’s Journal * Topic: How to Indicate Unspoken Thoughts * Of Interest Topic: How to Indicate Unspoken Thoughts There are generally two major ways to indicate the direct, unspoken thoughts (or internal monologue) of the POV character. Either is acceptable, depending on whom you ask and your personal preference as a writer: 1. Put the POV character’s direct unspoken thoughts in italics to visually differentiate them from narration. (I used to recommend doing this.) 2. Leave the direct thoughts in regular font like the narration. (I now recommend doing this.) Consistency Is Key — whichever way you choose to … Read more

The Journal: Point of View

In today’s Journal * A lighter day * Topic: Whose Point of View Is It? * Of Interest * The Numbers Had a lighter day yesterday. I wanted to break 30,000 words but didn’t quite get there. I found a glitch I had to work out. This series has a cast of dozens of main characters, so I get confused with some of the names and assignments every now and then. (grin) When that happens, it’s better to slow down and work out glitches when I find them than to wait and hope for the best. But the story’s still … Read more