Hi there, new poster here! I have an idea for a novel but I can't decide on a couple of the most basic things and it's stalling my writing. So I'm looking for opinions Do you prefer reading a book in 1st or 3rd person? Do you prefer a female or male as the protagonist/viewpoint? What age do you prefer the main characters be? Does a high school or a slightly older (college-age) character sound more appealing? I'm torn between a high school setting vs. a character in his/her early twenties and I feel like I could write the story in either direction. The book would contain some romance but is a sort of thriller, I suppose.
It's more important to think about what kind of story you want to tell. You can find a sizable audience for any combination of the answers to those questions. It's all about telling a story and finding people who are interested in reading it. To answer for how some of these will effect the book's target audience: Both can work well. First person is slightly more popular among young readers, and works best when you stick to exactly one viewpoint character. There are many exceptions to this though. It comes down to which you prefer writing in. You should be fine with either so long as you're true to the characters. Unless the story demands it, you'll probably want to consider having plenty of both male and female characters. Older readers will probably prefer older characters on average, so I'd recommend thinking about your preferred audience. But there are many notable exceptions here. Ender's Game is a popular book for all ages, and most of its characters are young kids. Again I think the question should be what kind of story you want to tell. Though the ages of the characters may win you some points with readers of that age.
Do you prefer reading a book in 1st or 3rd person? Most definitely Third Person Omniscient. Flash Fiction and short work is perfect for First Person, but for novel length it's just exhausting to be inside the same person's head. Do you prefer a female or male as the protagonist/viewpoint? Doesn't matter so much. What age do you prefer the main characters be? Again, doesn't matter to me. Does a high school or a slightly older (college-age) character sound more appealing? If it comes down to that choice, I prefer younger. College-age and college educated people are already such a drag on society that I don't care to read about their misadventures, such as they might be.
Generally speaking, and this is JUST my opinion, so make of it as you will...in the stuff I write I don't think I've ever even tried a First Person description. Honestly I wouldn't know how, which is odd since I play FPS games night and day lol! But I prefer if it weren't First Person since there is something...idk, odd about that in written fiction. As for male or female protagonists, I honestly can take or leave either, some of my favorite heroes from fiction like Princess Leia and Ellen Ripley were women but then again I always loved Han Solo, The Man With No Name and Riddick too sooo...I think the part that is more relevant is if the hero is appealing to the audience. Having a HEROINE over a HERO is fine, and as I said I fucking fell in love with Ellen Ripley as a youth so it can even be desirable! But don't make her a Mary Sue, give her vulnerabilities and weaknesses, ones that she overcomes in a realistic sense. I keep going back to this, but that scene at the end of Aliens when Ripley is gearing up to fight the Xenomorph Queen and save Newt and you can see the blistering fear in her face (this also has to do with Sigourney Weaver's skill as an actress) and yet she STILL charges in and fights like a fucking rabid dog! It works...a lot...the sweaty wet t-shirt also helped, but you get my drift. And yes teens are a great idea, especially in romance settings, imo. The fact is that young people tend to be more emotional, less cynical and hard-nosed than adults, and as a result they view the world in a more romantic way as a matter of course. I'm not going to lie but as someone who basically grew up watching soap operas with my grandma ("The Stories" as she called it) this affects a lot of my views of romantic fiction. Young people having crazy, rocky relationships is an appealing "genre" for a lot of people. Personally I tend to go for characters of like 15 to 17 as a matter of course, some younger or older maybe but generally that's just my "age range" and kinda the target audience I think of. But again, that's just my ideas.
3rd person is safer I think. This is entirely up to your and your story. Choosing a character of the same gender as you is probably slightly easier to write. Choosing a character of a different gender may help you avoid any self insert. The prevalence of high school characters I find annoying. Especially in action/adventure stories. I would err away from it. College age characters have the advantages of still being in the process of 'finding themselves' and having some of the turbulence of teenagers, but are somewhat more mature and capable. High school characters are still a perfectly reasonable option though, so it does depend on your goals, but that's my preference.
Definitely 3rd person all the way!! I don't want to use the word hate but I am not a fan of 1st person at all. Does not matter but male if I had to choose one. Really depends on the story. Kids,young adult or teen if I had to choose. I like adult stories with kids or teens navigating in an adult world. I say that because teen stories themselves feel dummed down and cliche. Often enough we don't get to see from their POV (in adult stories) Answered above. I love stories with a mixed bag of ages though. once again depends on the story of course. Oh whatever you do don't make whiny annoying self asorbed wild disrepectful teenagers (unless the story requires it) because they are not ALL this way and it annoys me to no end. And if you add romance please don't do the love at first site with the hottest boy/girl in school.. I beg you This is just my opinion but what makes romance so endearing are the little gestures, the looks, the smiles, the cute behaviors, the things that put butterflies in your belly. not the hotness of the face/body
1. Third person. 2. Depends on the genre. I prefer male for action. Female for romance. I do like exceptions depending on how they're handled. 3. Depends entirely on the setting/plot. I'm not crazy about orphans giving the writer free range to have juvenile characters not have to answer to anyone. If you're going to do adventure I'd prefer either an adult present and guiding them or the kid to be 18+ 4. Again really depends on the plot. 5. Think of the benefits of each option. A child still living at home would have some benefits but also some restrictions limiting when they could go out and what they can do. If you want to write with those limits (as they can also be opportunities for a thriller) then go for it. But if you need your character to be more mobile, more free and more vulnerable, I'd up the age.
