We’ve been discussing writing characters who are strong, who strive toward their goal and who are in some way larger-than-life. And as we considered supporting cast members who upstage the hero/heroine, I must say a last word about this main character thing: Sometimes, the person whom you think is the main character is really a supporting cast member.
Writing Tip for Today: One of my students brought in Olive Kitteridge as part of an in-class exercise. I remember reading that the author, Elizabeth Strout, wrote these interconnected stories from other character’s viewpoints. But something didn’t feel right. Then it hit her: she needed to tell the story from Henry’s POV. She rewrote the entire book. Likewise, in your work you may occasionally feel a tug that says you’re writing the wrong story, from the wrong character’s viewpoint. Ask yourself, “Whose story is this?” Many writers get confused here. While the best person to narrate a story may or may not be the POV character, you should be able to answer the question without hesitation. In multiple viewpoint novels, the reader encounters more than one narrator, but the result should still be that the novel is about one character’s story more than the others.
Try This! Take a scene from your WIP, using the narrator/protagonist you’ve chosen, and rewrite that scene from the POV of each remaining character. How does the story remain the same and how does it change? Have you chosen the best protagonist for the story?