This is something I've started doing a little in my latest novel and I'm worried it's not quite correct. If, for instance, your writing a chapter from a boy called Ethan's point of view, but you flip and describe what his best friend Stacey thinks, is this confusing / not grammatically correct? I've been doing it because it's not first person and because third person is not strictly from anyone's point of view, but do I still need to stick to just the one character's point of view? For instance, take this paragraph: Ethan was so lost in thought that he didn’t notice his best friend, Stacey, had started to notice something was amiss. She could tell something was wrong by the way he stared listlessly in class, not showing any interest or scribbling down notes like he used to. He was different, she could tell, but she didn’t dare confront him about it in case she might lose his friendship. and: For the rest of the lunchbreak Ethan fell back into his usual listless state and said little to Stacey while they finished their food in the cafeteria. She made several attempts to engage in conversation but Ethan, lost in thought, only offered minimal responses and stared back at her as if under a spell. He was never shy with Stacey, most times he couldn’t shut up, so she found his silence quite disarming. I've modified it a bit so it doesn't seem too much like head hopping, but I describe Stacey's reaction to Ethan's change in demeanour and think it doesn't read too badly. However, is this not the correct way to write in third person? Obviously Ethan doesn't know what Stacey thinks of him, but I still want to focus on Stacey and her reaction / the fact she knows something is wrong. Is it okay to head hop if it's not confusing / clearly explained? Or is it just a no no altogether? Be good to know your thoughts.
You're describing omniscient 3rd person perspective. Lots of older books are written that way. Invisible Man comes to mind IIRC. Nothing wrong with it; it's just on the atypical end these days. Have you researched omniscient versus limited 3rd person? That's pretty much where your answer lies. It's okay to head hop if you decide you're writing omniscient 3rd, and it's not okay if you're writing limited 3rd. Limited is all about what your chapter's/section's character of focus can perceive. Whichever you pick, it's best to have some measure of consistency.
