A Million Minds

When I was starting on my novel a few years ago, my first inclination was to use multiple viewpoints. Two drafts existed this way, moving between a set of five characters. Eventually, I locked in to one character, but how does a writer know when a novel should have multiple or single viewpoint(s)?

Beginning writers are more likely to fall into multiple POV. In my opinion, multiple POV allows a budding writer to get to know their own characters when they start a first draft. You write how Bob sees the world, and how Alice sees Bob, and what Chris likes for breakfast in the morning, and you know that Jennifer hates her job and why.

It's the "why" that writers are striving for. If you start a first draft, staying strictly with Bob, then you might not feel as close to Jennifer as you do with your main character. Sure, Jennifer will have her purpose (hopefully) within the narrative, but there is something binding about writing in a character's POV, a relationship that's created when you delve into the mind of someone else. But once that relationship is established, some writers don't want to let go. If they've given Jennifer a mind of her own, can they lock her out in another draft? It seems slightly unfair to Jennifer, doesn't it? But if you feel that guilt, you've done a good job of connecting with your character. You care about them. And because you care, you'll be better able to express who they are without giving them a viewpoint. It will come through their action and dialogue.

Imagine a first draft as the foundation for your final draft. That foundation is a playground - nothing's built yet - and your characters are your children being taken out for a day of fun. You let your kids out of the mini-van and they play, interact, throw some rocks, make some sand castles...all the while you (the parent and writer) observe each one of them and take mental notes. You see that Bob makes his sand castles very tall because he wants to emulate his father the architect, and that Jennifer loves to throw rocks because she imagines herself a princess fighting off trolls, and Alice sits in the corner by herself because she thinks no one likes her, and Chris starts digging a hole in the sand-box because he's trying to reach China.

You know your characters now - their goals, their mindset. The next step is figuring out a) what the story is, and b) whether or not you're going to let all four of your children in on it.

Some writers might presume that knowing their characters is enough to warrant a POV. But the question that should be asked is do you need to know the intentions of Bob, Alice, Jennifer, and Chris all-at-once? Even if Bob seems to bring something unique to the story that Alice doesn't, does that mean he should get his own take on the story?

Probably not.

Viewpoint is a story-choice, it's not the story itself. Even if you have four viewpoints, it doesn't mean that the four children are going to be interesting. It's the story that needs to be interesting in itself. And the story needs focus. Once your story has a purpose, you can choose a character (or characters) that best serve that purpose. But remember - there should be a reason that Alice and Bob both get a POV. If Alice pops in for one scene to say her piece, you need to know that there's no other way to let the reader know who she is. Can she tell Bob? Can she show Bob who she is by her action? Do we need to know exactly what she's thinking in that one scene?

Multiple POV can be an easy route. A writer doesn't have to work as hard to show a character through action when they can open up that character's mind and tell all. Even in third person, the thoughts are there, told through a narrator.

I'm not downing the use of multiple POV, as long as it works, but in many cases it's not needed to serve the ultimate goal of the story. A lot of the time it detracts from the intrigue of the novel because the writer takes up pages letting each character have their say without moving the story forward at the same time. We see one event happen in the eyes of three different people. That repetition slows the narrative.

I would recommend the use of multiple viewpoints for a first draft, only for the purpose of getting to know your characters. That will give an idea of who is going to be the most compelling viewpoint, and more importantly, who is going to drive the story forward. If you decide to add another viewpoint, even for a chapter or two, you will at least have a sense of that character and their purpose, and knowing that purpose will keep their viewpoint focused and necessary. It will aid the story - not detract from it.

So, if one of Jennifer's imaginary trolls comes to life, kidnaps Alice, and escapes down the hole Chris has been digging, your story has begun - but who to tell it? I'm voting for the kidnapped Alice, the loner who finds her true self as she escapes from an evil troll kingdom. But maybe Chris' daring bid to save Alice could provide more adventure. That's ultimately a writer's choice, and a very important one.

Can We Be Without Motivation?

I want to thank quillhill for inspiring this post...

Can we write a book without any character motivation whatsoever? I think I've just written an oxymoron, because guess what?

Motivation is Character.

The real question is: can we be people without any motivation? Sure, some people have "no motivation" - they don't have jobs, they sit on their patoot all day, but they're actually quite motivated to do nothing at all. There's still motivation there to do something. Even when you do nothing with your life (so to speak), you're doing something by doing nothing.

Okay, enough with the verbal carousel.

Can you have a main character with no goals in mind; with no particular motivation as he/she/it walks through the narrative?

No. Because, as I said, if your character has no goals or motivation, then your character is not a character at all - they're a piece of cardboard. Go ahead and defend your piece of cardboard, but in all honesty, do people want to follow a character/s that aren't alive? That they can't connect with emotionally - even if it's to hate them?

I don't think so.

Two movies that come to mind that don't follow the obvious "loss=motivation" rule are Taxi Driver and A Clockwork Orange. But what do both of these have? Strong main characters.

Alex in A Clockwork Orange just wants to pillage, and Travis in Taxi Driver is taking a course in existentialism. Neither has a clear goal in mind - they wander - but both have characters so strong that those traits become their motivation.

The government puts Alex through a Pavlov's dog treatment and he can no longer be violent. There's your conflict right there. The boy that stands for all that is destruction can't be destructive.

Travis struggles with himself, with the world, but in the end actually "saves" a young prostitute. The man who can't understand or justify his and the world's existence becomes a quintessential hero.

So in conclusion, if you're struggling to find that motivation or goal, take a look at your character. Get right up close so you can see all of their pores and the nitty-gritty good-stuff. See what they're made of. If they have strong characters, then they will be able to lead a story. An effective, intriguing character will find a story for themselves. Who needs a writer? It's your job to give them the mojo to do that.

Keep at it.


Any questions or comments? Email me at wolfjackalsheep@gmail.com

Where's My Motivation?

If you're still working through your first novel (like me), I would recommend choosing a story that is purely driven by a character motivation or need i.e., pick a character with a clear goal.

A goal will help set the rest of the story in place. If your character stays on his/her path, pursuing their goal, then you as the writer will find it easier to move forward.

Remember that 'focus' I was talking about? If you focus on your main character's goals, you may find it easier to write every scene in service to that quest. Look at every scene as a way to bring your main character closer to achieving their goal.

Haven't got a goal in mind? Haven't got a main character in mind? Here's an exercise to try:

Write down the names of every one of your characters. Yes, all of them...

Go through each character and write down the one thing that could happen to them that would change their lives forever. I'm talking about major life change:
What would destroy them?

What would have them raging at the heavens?

Or, on a brighter note: what do they treasure the most in their world?

What do they have to lose?

Go through your list now and find the character with the most to lose. This should probably be your main character. If you've already got a main character in mind, see what you wrote down next to their name. Imagine that this 'event' actually happens. What would they do?

That's your story: what your main character will do once they lose the thing they treasure most.

For an example, my work-in-progress begins with the relationship of Inoperable Squirrel and his Uncle Thor. Thor means everything to I.S. When Thor disappears, I.S. sets out to find him. This is his major goal: find his uncle.

For an unfocused writer, putting a goal as #1 may bring inspiration to your narrative.

Here's another quick example:

Cindy is a princess set to be married to her true love Sebastian. Sebastian has promised to take her away from the kingdom of her evil uncle Maurice. But King Maurice hires a dragon to kidnap Sebastian. Cindy sets out to find her true love, knowing that death awaits her if she stays in her uncle's kingdom.

The evil king sends his evil minions after her, but she is saved at the last moment by a peasant named Jake. Jake agrees to take her across the ruins of the kingdom to find the lair of the dragon. All the way, they are dogged by Maurice's minions, and faced with the trials of passing through a cursed land.

When they finally reach the dragon's lair, Sebastian reveals that he made a bargain with the dragon to replace himself with Jake. Happiness! But Cindy realizes that she has fallen in love with Jake. Who will she choose? What will she do?

I'll save you the happy ending, folks (and it would have been good), but see all the trouble Cindy gets into by having the one goal of saving Sebastian? This gives rise to all sorts of drama! See how much fun you can have?

For some extra examples in the real world:

Books: In The Shining, all Jack Torrance wants to do is finish his novel (the goal), so he takes a job as caretaker for an aging hotel, hoping to find peace and inspiration. Too bad the hotel is just a tad haunted...

Movies: In the recent movie Juno, Juno finds out she's pregnant and decides to keep the baby. Her goal is to find appropriate adoptive parents for it.

TV: In Lost, survivors of Flight Oceanic 815 land on a myserious desert island. Now all they want to do is find a way to get off of it...

And for real-life drama, just take a look at Henry the 8th. All he wanted to do was marry Anne Boleyn and divorce his wife Katherine of Aragon. In order to achieve his goal, he created the Church of England.

Try for some motivation, folks. See what happens.