Switching from first-person for one scene

Just have a question for y'all. Is it possible to go from first-person pov to third-person for one scene before switching back to first?

Cheers

 

For the same character? You should have a very strong reason to do so (I can imagine a suchlike situation in the case if character's soul is pulled out of his body and he's looking at his body doing things - in a case like this it would fit perfectly).

If you switch to show some events from a POV of another character, then there is no problem at all, just make sure you clearly separate this scene visually, so that reader is not confused with a sudden transition (true for the first example as well).

 

Sure, it can be done.
Adding to what Ksenia Tomasheva said above...

There should be a pretty good reason because such a switch, especially later in a novel, can potentially throw a reader off and/or out of the story's flow.

 

Can you explain why you want to do this?

 

I'm doing the latter. Thanks for explaining that!

 

I just think that this scene that I'm about to write would flow better from a different person's POV and maybe be a nice break.

 

Have you considered making the whole thing close third person with shifting POV? Shifting more than once might make it less of a jolt.

 

I have, yes, but I don't think that would work very well in this case.

 

Not my business, really, but so many people say, “I can’t use third person because I want to show my chracter’s thoughts and feelings.” So just in case that is the reason, you can show your character’s thoughts and feelings just as much in third person as first person.

I realize your reason could be any one of a hundred other things.

 

An interesting question, @CallMeSarah . I'm sure it's been done before ...in fact I'm sure I've read books with a first-to-third person POV change, although the titles don't come to mind just now. However, I think it might be very distracting if it was only done once (only at one point in the story) or for just a small portion of a chapter. That's not to say it can't work, though. Do what you want during your initial draft and see how it plays out later on.

Are you doing your shift because you want an outsider's perspective on your first-person narrator? Or is it because your first person narrator isn't present at all, but you want the reader to see a scene happening elsewhere?

I'm working out a similar problem as I construct my second novel. There are a couple of scenes that would be easier to write from a new POV whom I probably wouldn't use again. So far I'm resisting doing that. I have three POVs for that story (written in close third) and I am loathe to add more—especially any who would only be around for one scene. There is always a way to write a scene if you decide not to do a POV shift.

Play around with the idea and go with the one that appeals to you the most. You can always change back during the edit, and rewrite those bits if they don't work, or if the unexpected shift jars the reader too much. This is where beta reader feedback can be immensely helpful.

 

Rather both.

Thank you so much for your help! I'll take your advice and not worry too much about it now, as this is the first draft.

 

I feel like shifting for just one scene would be kinda weird... not if it were the very first scene or the last scene, but just one scene somewhere in the middle? Not necessarily wrong, but certainly unexpected...

 

Thanks. I think I'll go from my main character's first-person POV to a different guy's first-person as you're right; it would be a weird jolt.