Which of the two do you like to write about the most. I personally like 1st person more, but I love to switch POV with 3rd person. How about you?
I'm all about the third person but I have to admit, there is something awfully appealing about the first person. Every now and then it's nice to write a little short in first person.
I prefer third person primarily because 1. I use many characters, and like to switch between them, and 2. I like to keep a certain distance from my characters most of the time--I don't want them to be the narrator, *I* want to be the narrator, telling what they do and know. I can't really explain the latter that well, so...*shrug.* I can easily write in first person too, though. It's just not usually my preference, and the few times I did it, it was because I felt I had to use it to capture a certain feeling in the story. Again, hard to explain.
I like first because you can be more personal and really get into character. I like third because you're able to describe much more and not just what you soley see from the main character.
I'm doing my current work in first person, wehich is nice because you really see inside the character, howerver it presents a unique challange in writing because it ties you to that character. (i.e. for the reder to know something about what is going on yu have to place a character there for them to experiance it.) It gets at times to be like playing a game of chess. 3rd person removes that challange, but dosen't let you into the character as easily. Overall, I've really fallen in love with 1st person, but I have done short stories in 3rd as well.
I think it's somewhat of a myth that third person doesn't allow as tight a focus on the character as does first person. Third person with a tightly bound POV can be very intimate indeed. I decided to write Midnight Swim in first person, mostly to prove to myself that I could do a good job of it. But I deeply believe I could have done every bit as well with it in third person.
I prefer 1st person generally because most of my stories are set inside the heads and minds of the character, so it just makes things simpler. But I agree with Cog that you can have third person but still be very intimate, you just have to do it slightly differently. I'm not really a big Harry Potter fan, but have you noticed that although they're written in third person, they pretty much always follow Harry? I always thought that was quite interesting. But it would feel completely different if it was written in first person, and I'm not sure you'd get the same kind of closeness to Harry.
im do all my writing in third person mainly because writing i first person turns the character into me, my thoughts and wishes instead of the template i gave him. and also because it allows me to focus on alot of characters without the weird transition.
I love first person POV. Third person is very challenging for me, though I have written plenty of stories in third person limited, which sometimes can work better than first person POV.
Piers Anthony also does this. And I think we'd have a different idea on Harry if the stories were in first-person.
First person is great to read, you're in the middle of the action. But I prefer writing in third person, because it leaves you freer to work on different characters. Just a thought.
I like the first person, but I get a little paranoid that I'm using to many I's and Me's in the narrative.
Agreed, the books would seem totally different in first person. I just can't imagine it like that. I don't think it would really work.
Exactly. IN first person, you don't have to describe as many details as third person: For example: 3rd person: He pointed his finger, making sure the blade of---- ah forget it, i can't write thrid person. at least right now. First person is much better because you can write something like: I pointed my finger in his face. BTW my examples are NOT good. But first person is better
I like first person myself. With it, I can really build the paratagonist from more than just a charactor into a person, dealing with pychology, innermost fears and feelings aswell as what is going on around them.
