How Fiction Works Writing Meme - Day One

[meridian_rose]

Thanks so much to pristineungift for this meme :D
If you want to join in, you can find the full set of questions at pristineungift's entry:here
I'll make an index post when I've completed the meme with links to all my answers; they will all be tagged #how fiction works meme.

1 - What style of narration do you usually write in? Which do you prefer to read? First person singular, first person plural, second person singular (rarely well executed) , third person limited, third person omniscient? Are certain styles superior to others? Why or why not?

I write third person omniscient, and third person limited generally speaking. It depends on what I'm writing and whose POV is the most pressing – if it's a character piece, for example, I'll try and limit myself to that character's POV and they will interpret their surroundings; 'John appeared angry' or 'Jane actually seemed to be considering his throwaway suggestion ' rather than 'John was seriously annoyed' or 'Jane paused and gave this serious consideration for a moment; it wasn't a sensible option, but it was rather tempting to just board the first bus out of here'.

I will sometimes write first person, but rarely – short character introspection/missing scene fics where we're talking about fanfic, and personal backstory in original fic.

I would say I prefer to read third person narratives but that doesn't mean I don't read first person narratives. However, it depends on the character who is narrating. For instance, I like the Vampire Chronicles, which uses first person singular POV by a different character in each book.
However, I enjoy watching 'True Blood' but find the novels – and Sookie, the omniscient narrator – less enjoyable. I want to know what the other characters are up to, and the obsession with everything Sookie does and thinks irritates me in the books. Amongst other things I think she's a prude and a hypocrite, but that's another rant.

I wrote just one short piece in second person singular, and that was for a landcomm challenge. I struggled through Iain Bank's A Song of Stone which was written wholly or partly in this style. I think it can be useful; hypertext fiction, like the Choose Your Own Adventure YA books, for example, where you take on the part of the protagonist and make choices affecting the story's outcome. Also I'm thinking erotica fulfilling a particular kink could be enjoyable to read as a participant rather than a voyeur.

I don't think I've ever read or written anything using first person plural – 'we' rather than 'I'.

Comments

[hrhrionastar.livejournal.com]

Ooh, another writing meme!

You know I enjoy first person - it helps me get inside the head of the character (although if you don't like the viewpoint character, that doesn't help so much)...

I don't think I've ever come across anything written in first plural - now I'm tempted to try it, just because it seems so weird ;)

[meridian_rose]

Oh, you should :D It's fun to try new things. I was thinking about 'we' and something like Star Trek's Borg would fit: we are the Borg...or the auditors, from the Discworld, for whom individuality is fatal and thus must speak as 'we'. I suppose letter writing on behalf of a company could work; we are pleased to offer you the position.
I'll be interested to see what you come up with if you do tackle it :D