The Power Of Point Of View: Make Your Story Come To Life [Paperback]

Alicia Rasley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 11, 2008 | ISBN-10: 1582975248 | ISBN-13: 978-1582975245 | Edition: 1st. Ed

Every Character Has a Voice

Point of view isn't just an element of storytelling–when chosen carefully and employed consistently in a work of fiction, it is the foundation of a captivating story.

It's the character voice you can hear as clearly as your own. It's the unique worldview that intrigues readers–persuading them to empathize with your characters and invest in their tale. It's the masterful concealing and revealing of detail that keeps pages turning and plots fresh. It's the hidden agenda that makes narrators complicated and compelling.

It's also something most writers struggle to understand. In The Power of Point of View, RITA Award-winning author Alicia Rasley first teaches you the fundamentals of point of view (POV)–who is speaking, why, and what options work best within the conventions of your chosen genre. Then, she takes you deeper to explain how POV functions as a crucial piece of your story–something that ultimately shapes and drives character, plot, and every other component of your fiction.

Through comprehensive instruction and engaging exercises, you'll learn how to:

• choose a point of view that enhances your characters and plots and encourages reader involvement
• navigate the levels of a character's point of view, from objective viewing to action to emotion
• craft unusual perspectives, including children, animal narrators, and villains

A story changes depending on who's telling it, and The Power of Point of View will help you determine which of your characters can make your story come to life.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Award-winning romance novelist Alicia Rasley teaches writing at Indiana University-Indianapolis, online, and at writing workshops around the country and in Canada. She currently serves as an acquisitions editor for Red Sage Books and is now president of the Indiana chapter of Romance Writers of America.

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Writer's Digest Books; 1st. Ed edition (March 11, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582975248
• ISBN-13: 978-1582975245
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #222,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Master Class in POV - Concise and reader friendly May 9, 2008

By Livvy VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Initially, I was hesitant in purchasing this book as I saw so many copies becoming available as "used". When that happens, either the book is lacking in content or its organizational style makes it difficult to read. Well, I am glad I purchased it because the book offers a very detailed look on Point of View as well addressing advanced particulars in mixing POVs, voice, and time. Almost every chapter is followed with a recommended reading list for further study as well as helpful exercises to emphasize craft.

This is definitely a book that needs to be read more than once. Not because of level of difficulty but because of the amount of helpful information. Perhaps that is why there are so many copies available. Her book is not organized with boxes of summaries, lists, a lot of white space or diagrams. No space is wasted and perhaps for some this style might be intimidating as it seems (visually) like you are about to read a novel.

Rasley is definitely an author to watch out for in terms of "Writing How-To's. I would love to see her write a book on Dialogue as there are so many duds out there.

In The Power of Point of View, Rasley notes her personal preferences when writing herself, but does not allow her explanations of POV to be biased by that. She talks about Genre conventions, narrative distance, to individualizing POV. She uses a conversational tone in her explanations and makes learning POV easy to understand. My only minor pet peeve is that she did not include a bibliography at the end of the book to wrap up all the books that she has mentioned and recommended.

Here is the Table of Contents:

1. What is POV
2. POV Choices and What They Communicate About Your Story
3. POV and the Elements of Story
4. First Person
5. Second Person
6. Impersonal Third Person
7. Personal Third Person - Single
8. Personal Third Person - Multiple
9. Individualizing POV
10. Levels of POV
11. Creating Alternative and Unusual Voices

All in all, if you are ready for a full immersion of a Master Class in POV, then definitely get this one!

If you are looking for just a basic primer to start off with on POV with some of the more advanced nuances explained in briefest terms, than check out Donna Levin's "Get That Novel Written". It has 2 excellent chapters on POV and Time.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The BEST! August 19, 2008

By music lover

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I consider myself a fairly advanced writer. I've studied POV in writing courses and on my own, and it's a topic most writers tend to struggle with... and most tend to fall into the "safe" first person and third person, because they are easy, and easily understood.

What Ms. Rasley has done is put together an exhaustive reference of OTHER choices, complete with examples and reasons why a writer might choose them to tell a particular story. To me, that is what makes this book worth every penny of the purchase price: demystifying the choice of WHO should tell a particular story.

If I had to whittle my large collection of writing books down to just a handful, this is absolutely one I would keep!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Solves the Serious Writing Problem You Didn't Know You Had! May 16, 2008

By A Lover of Good Books

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

As anyone who has read her other books or taken one of her seminars knows, the hallmark of Alicia Rasley's teaching is that she gives you the tools you need to fix the technical problems that keep your writing from selling.

A lot of writing books play to the fantasy that you're going to write something wonderful, but beyond some platitudes they don't give you much help in doing that.

Not Alicia's. She gives you example after example, chosen from many different genres, that show you what works, and more importantly, what doesn't work, and why. She also gives you exercises that get you examining your current work in progress so you can improve what you've already written to make it stronger.

Point of View is one of those subtle things that most beginning authors don't pay much attention to. But Alicia shows you that whether you are aware of it or not, you are constantly making POV choices as you write, and many of those choices weaken your narrative drive.

She shows you how to make the right choices--ones that make your tepid prose more gripping and get the reader more involved with your characters. She also shows you how subtle changes in the way you use POV can heighten suspense or charge up the emotion in your stories.

This is a book for someone who is serious about becoming a really good novelist. If the book isn't a top bestseller, it's probably because there aren't all that many people around who fit that category. Until you've actually written a manuscript or two and run into the problems this book solves you won't realize just how brilliant Alicia's teaching is!