#139: 5 Multi POV Mistakes (And How To Avoid Them)

Fiction Writing Made Easy

Telling a story through multiple viewpoints can be a great way to create a more expansive (and objective) look at your characters, world, plot, and/or theme. But with each additional viewpoint character you add to your story, the more room there is for mistakes. In this episode, I'm sharing the 5 most common multi POV mistakes writers make and how to avoid them in your draft.
Here’s a preview of what’s included:
[2:10] Mistake #1: Including too many POV characters without an intentional reason for including each one.
[6:10] Mistake #2: Not developing each POV character as if they were the protagonist of their own story—they lack their own goal, motivation, and conflict.
[9:01] Mistake #3: Not tying the characters' storylines together via a common plot problem, a central relationship, or binding their fates together.
[11:47] Mistake #4: Head hopping between different POV characters without making the switch clear to the reader.
[14:56] Mistake #5: Rehashing the same scene from different POVs without offering the reader new and potent information.
Links Mentioned In This Episode:

• Ep. #7 - 5 Questions to Help You Write Better Characters

Looking for a trusted beta reader for your manuscript? Click here and use code PODCAST15 to get 15% off The Spun Yarn's beta reading service fo the month of October!

Support the show

👉 Looking for a transcript? If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, scroll down below the episode player until you see the transcript.

Capitole

1. Avoiding Mistakes in Multi-Point Stories (00:00:00)

2. Avoiding Mistakes in Multiple Viewpoints (00:09:47)