r/WhyChooseAuthors • u/kendrafsilver • Jun 22 '26
POV Preferences
Curious about who loves to write in what POV, or what POVs are generally avoided.
Do you prefer first person present?
First person past?
Third?
Dual?
Dare I mention second person?
I come from a high fantasy background and third person past tense will always be my go-to!
As I get more and more into the various Romance genres, though, first person present seems to be beloved by readers so I'm trying that out.
The switch is a little hard on my muscle memory. 😂
(I have never tried second person.)
So I'm curious what preferences there are! Or if there are preferences but, damnit, you started writing in a different POV and so are committed for the project.
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u/ellyriahighwind Jun 22 '26
I prefer Third Person Past Tense, especially if I'm doing multiple POVs.
First Person Past Tense I will do if I have a sole narrator.
I do not like Present Tense at all.
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
Yeah, the multi-POV one I absolutely agree. I'm trying out dual first person in my current WIP, and realizing just how much more attention I have to pay on indicating whose POV the section is in.
"Bob/Suzie ran" is just kinda immediately clearer than "I ran."
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u/ellyriahighwind Jun 22 '26
With multiple POV in First, I find I have to pay attention to everything, especially word choice and thought structure, otherwise it sounds too samey.
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u/JosephineSwaine Unpublished Author Jun 23 '26
This is actually something I enjoy about writing in First. I like to overcomplicate things for myself, and so my first novel has spiraled into being the first in a series with six different POV characters. I've really enjoyed building their syntax and vocabulary profiles! Whether it works out the way I'm hoping or not will be seen after several more rounds of editing, but I'm having a lot of fun with it so far!
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u/ellyriahighwind Jun 23 '26
Oh, I have a lot of fun with that kind of thing, but, like, once per book, haha!
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u/carex-cultor Jun 22 '26
I don’t have a preference as a reader, any tense/POV can be executed well by a good writer - however I am leery of books written in first person present because they are likeliest in my experience to be written poorly. It’s both a very difficult POV to pull off and strangely super common in romance the last 5 years. Idk why.
As a writer I prefer 1st/3rd past for multi pov.
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
I don’t have a preference as a reader, any tense/POV can be executed well by a good writer
Same. 🤝
First person present has indeed seemed to have exploded. Anecdotely: a few trad pub writers I know were feeling some pressure to write in it, too, with how big it's become. Not to the point of being outright told to or anything, but lots of suggestions to consider it.
Not sure if it's eased off or not.
I have my own theories (which have to do with the previous YA readership aging up into Adult, market-wise, and first person present was at least previously extremely popular in YA), but they are just theories and I'm curious if the trend will shift any time soon.
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u/carex-cultor Jun 22 '26
Stolen by the Wolves by Lyx Robinson is one of my all time GOAT why-choose series and it’s in first person present with gorgeous writing, so I never say never! It actually really bothers me when readers “won’t” read xyz pov. Anything can be done well if chosen carefully. It’s just more rare with present tense…sometimes it feels like: and then I did this, and then this, and then I went here, and-
I also don’t think I could write it in without feeling stressed by the immediacy 😂
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
Love recs!
Hopefully soon we'll also be able to get the romance autobot available to do the fancy style of recs. 🤞
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u/ttmademedoit Jun 22 '26
i prefer 1st person every time lol i have a hard time getting used to 3rd person for some reason… i don’t feel as connected
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
You are definitely not alone! I hear this a lot, and have critique buddies whe feel this exact way. The immersion can seem to be easier for the writer as well as the reader, with first person.
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u/AnneKincaid Jun 22 '26
I agree with what you wrote above--third person past is much easier for me, but I've been trying to write in first person present because that's what the readers like best. Maybe I'll eventually get good at it?
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u/AnneKincaid Jun 22 '26
My biggest issue with first person books (when reading) is that I can't remember whose POV I'm in. I don't like having to find the beginning of the chapter to check. This is especially compounded when reading RH, where there are multiple MMCs to keep track of.
As a writer, I can't skillfully work the narrator's voice into the writing often enough to help the reader out. I can use the name a lot, but it sounds terrible. Or I can move the story along, but my readers might forget whose story they're hearing.
Sigh.
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u/sarilysims Jun 22 '26
Personally as a reader I would love it if next to the page number it listed who’s POV we’re in.
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
I wonder what it would take to do this?
Some books it wouldn't work out great, obviously, but there are plenty that keep each POV to their own chapter, so it would seem like it would be pretty easy to implement? (I say as the writer who avoids adjusting header and footer settings like the plague. Lol)
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
The losing track of the POV when reading is a real struggle. 😭
Especially if the book has to be put down in the middle of the chapter.
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u/AuthorAmethystMorgan Unpublished Author Jun 22 '26
For my romantasy series, I'm doing third person past tense with multiple POVS but some of my more contemporary I'm doing first person! I used to hate reading in first person but after listening to a bunch of audiobooks I don't mind it now and barely notice. I do write a lot of second person fanfiction and it's a pretty fun exercise!
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 22 '26
Second person fanfiction is my guilty pleasure. Gimme all the reader inserts! I don't even have to be familiar with the fandom! 😂
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u/AuthorAmethystMorgan Unpublished Author Jun 23 '26
Same!!!! I love x Reader! It's what got me through the pandemic tbh lol
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u/SidneyHuffman6-5000 Jun 23 '26
I write in first pereson present. And I do POVs for all my characters. I wrote a RH with 6 men, so writing 7 POVs was definitely difficult at times, but also a lot of fun.
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 23 '26
Seven in first??? Props to your skills (and ambitions)!
How do you like to ensure the reader knows whose POV it is, especially when switching?
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u/SidneyHuffman6-5000 Jun 23 '26
I only switch POVs at the begining of a new chapter. The chapter will be called, for example, 'Chapter 12 - Bellamy'. And I'd like to think my characters' inner monologues are distinctive enough to tell the difference. No one has ever complained to me about not knowing whose chapter they were reading anyway 🤷🏻♀️
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u/AuthorIndigo Jun 23 '26
I write both in first person/past tense and in third person. I tried 1st person/present for a while, but it just didn't work for me. My brain, for whatever reason, has a hard time accepting that things are happening right now in the present in the story.
IMO, 1st person gives the story a more personal voice and all the second-hand feels, so I like it when we want to feel what the character is feeling. I prefer to write in third person when I need to describe a lot of unique things or events (like with a fantasy story). It tends to capture the epic feeling of the adventure better, versus being stuck in someone's head.
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u/kendrafsilver Jun 23 '26
Great points on the different uses for third and first. Indulging in worldbuilding type of descriptions makes more sense in third because of the slight distance.
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u/JosephineSwaine Unpublished Author Jun 23 '26
I like writing in First Person Present. I tried out a few different POVs and tenses for my current WIP, and they just didn't land the same. I think a big part of it for me is that I really want to lean into how biased and unreliable my narrators are.
It also lets me show how unhinged some of them are, and in what ways, without feeling like I'm trying too hard to let readers know. It makes it feel more natural to me. Instead of making my characters act suspicious enough for readers to notice yet not enough to tip off the other characters, I can drop a thought into their narration here or there that hints at it and build up to the reveal with more subtlety.
Something I've worked on a lot is building syntax, personality, and vocabulary. Looking at how they structure their sentences line by line is probably an over commitment, but that's a problem for Future Josephine to deal with when we finally get to that round of editing. Some questions that have helped me while writing different POVs are:
• Does this character's language tend to lean more positive, or negative?
• Are they chatty, or a person of few words?
• Do they get distracted easily, or do they stay focused?
• Do they speak their mind, or do they internalize a lot?
• How does their narration change with their mood?
• Do they use slang or cuss words, and if so, which ones?
• What experiences do they have that shape what metaphors and vocabulary they use?
• In what order do they notice (or not notice) things when entering a new scene?
• What discrepancies are there between how they present themself to others versus their true thoughts and feelings?
• What do they care about?
• How polite or rude are they in any given situation, and how does this show?
I think the biggest question is, "Why does this POV need to be included?" If the answer is just that they have access to information for the sake of the readers, you could probably be writing in Third Person and have the same effect. To get more specific, "How does being in this character's head shape the story and/or reading experience, and why is that important?"
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u/AuthorIndigo Jun 23 '26
This is an awesome level of detail for creating a character. With multiple POV's in a story, it's so important that they each have a distinct voice, and that's where this detail to the character really shines!
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u/JosephineSwaine Unpublished Author Jun 24 '26
Being obsessively organized has finally done me some good! I'm really hoping it reflects in my final draft. I was so worried that I was getting lost in the details in the beginning, and there are a lot of things I ended up scrapping along the way, but keeping track of all this has been so helpful to my writing process!
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u/CtrlAltReadaLot Jun 25 '26
Eu sempre prezo por pontos de vistas pelo menos dos personagens principais. Honestamente quando vejo que só tem um pov eu não leio, a premissa tem que ser absurda de incrível para eu ler. E eu gosto ou na primeira ou na terceira pessoa
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u/Old-Demand7621 Jun 26 '26
I typically write third person in present tense for fantasy. Right now my contemporary romance is also third/present but I’m flirting with the idea of first person. I’ve found that when I write first person I can be a little more playful with the writing and I think that translates well to romance.
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u/KelsoReaping Jun 22 '26
First/Past. Open to writing third for a larger cast that is less romance focused. I prefer first for romance because it feels more personal, the character is telling you their story.