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How many POVs are too many?
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For me, the number of POVs could be any of the above. What I care about is how well those POVs are written and how necessary they are (or seem) to the story.
Isabelle wrote: "For me, the number of POVs could be any of the above. What I care about is how well those POVs are written and how necessary they are (or seem) to the story."No doubt -.-
I've read authors such as Neal Shusterman who use the technique of writing a chapter in a background character's POV to add a bit of background, mystery, or sympathy to a scene. Using that, you can have tens of POVs if the book/series is long enough. For main characters, what's important is making sure the reader can keep track of every one. If you're alternating between them, I think up to five would be okay, but beyond that it might be better to do chunks of narration.
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When it starts becoming a gimmick and distracts from the story. Miracle Creek and Game of Thrones famously cycle through multiple POVs but each viewpoint adds to a story you would never be able to tell otherwise.
Each game of thrones book starts with a POV from a unique character so that. is part of the books formula and it is done well.
But I tend to get annoyed when author's just go to another POV once or twice randomly.
So long it is efficient for the story -in the sense that we get a "good" ending for one POV before starting another- I don't mind. But I DO tend to mind if it stops as cliffhangers always. A well written and distinct voices in the POV makes it interesting to read. And I'll love as much as the author will add.
Game of Thrones by George RR Martin had 9 rotating POVs, and that was the magnum opus of a career (and very good) writer. Consequently, one of the biggest complaints about GoT is too many characters (and those are large books at 200k+ words each).Each POV requires character building and context, and assuming each isn't a separate short story, will need to be interweaved among the other POVs. Not a trivial challenge.
If you're not an experienced writer, I would suggest no more than 4 rotating POVs (2 is probably a better number though).
It depends on the reader. Although we can't control that, it's up to us to write those POV as compelling as possible.
The more POVs you write, the more difficult it will be to manage. I'm not saying it can't be done because it definitely could, but it would be quite difficult to have, say, even 5 POVs in a story. In most circumstances, it's the best idea to stick to only having 1-3 of them.
In general, I agree that the number of POVSs doesn't matter. It's more how it's written but Lilyyy has a good point. Much harder to manage the more you have buuuut I do tend to enjoy multile POV stories
As a developmental editor who specializes in sci-fi and fantasy, I often come across manuscripts with entirely too many perspectives. Having multiple perspectives is hard to manage, and unless you are an experienced author with a deep understanding of the craft, I strongly recommend against having more than three main perspectives. Sometimes you may have to introduce more for plot reasons, but oftentimes, you won't need more than three anyway. It can also be difficult to get readers to care about so many characters and may cause other elements of the novel, such as the plot or setting, to suffer.
If you are interested in writing a novel with multiple perspectives, I suggest reading novels that include multiple POVs. Aside from Game of Thrones, my brain can only think of sci-fi examples right now, however, I'll update this post if I think of any fantasy ones.
The Villains duology by VE Schwab includes at least 9 POVs between the two books and is a very well-written example, where all the perspectives are clearly defined and important to the overall plot.
"For the Win" by Cory Doctorow has at least 12 different POVs. This is an example where characterization, suffers a bit, but the plot and themes are enhanced by the inclusion of multiple POVs.
"Seven Wonders" by Adam Christopher is a less successful example. The excessive number of POVs, in addition to the extremely fast pacing, made the book very confusing and caused character development and worldbuilding to suffer. It probably had about 12 perspectives as well.
The Six of Crows duology is a fantasy example, though it's YA. I believe there were 5 main POVs in the first book and 6 in the second. The worldbuilding, plot, and character were all very well done, though it relied quite heavily on character backstory to establish the characters. However, the series is very popular and even has a show on Netflix, so it could be a useful model.
Anyway, do some reading and research and choose how many perspectives you think your book needs/can handle. If you are nervous about how the number of perspectives your book has, I suggest getting some beta readers to look at it or purchasing an editorial assessment.
Happy writing!
I've taken a slight break from YA fantasy, but I know Legend has two POVs (the two main characters) and The Young Elites has four to five POVs.
It does depend a lot on how much you cycle between characters, but generally, 4-6 is the most I can handle reading. :)
I'm also interested in people's views. I wrote a full-length novel years ago and I am trying now to tidy it up. It has multiple POVs. Only 2-3 MCs, but some minor characters come in for a few chapters and you get their POVs until they leave the plot.
David wrote: "I'm also interested in people's views. I wrote a full-length novel years ago and I am trying now to tidy it up. It has multiple POVs. Only 2-3 MCs, but some minor characters come in for a few chapt..."That sounds perfectly okay to me!
I've read books with more than five characters and books with only one. If the writer invests me in each character, be they protagonists or antagonists, I don't mind the number.
For all things writing, my opinion is one of the best ways to learn is to read great books similar to what we want to write.
Best.
No more than necessary. If this is your first novel, I recommend sticking with just 1. Or you could go the JK Rowling route of third person, but it's 95% just from Harry's point of view. This is also a great way to make sure you have the right hero for your story. If one character has to constantly fill in the other POV characters about the world, or is making all the story relevant decisions, that character should probably be the hero of the story.
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Books mentioned in this topic
Legend (other topics)The Young Elites (other topics)
Disregarding further details, in a fantasy story with a complex world and many layers of the plot, how many POVs (chapters) are most welcome in your opinion/experience?
a)1-2;
b)2-5;
c)5-7;
d)7-10;
e)10+.