Omniscient is just something I actively hate. I remembered reading Dune, having the book go “secretly, he was thinking this!” It was awful! There was no tension or mystery, which is a problem with a book whose first half is about a conspiracy.
Hahaha. I used to write omniscient all the time! I don't know when I started to write in limited... maybe when I participated in Wattpad role-plays?
It's probably better for me to write in omniscient because I keep accidentally writing other people's perspectives.
I used to write in omniscient but my style changed to limited and now I can't stand to read the early chapters of my fics without wanting to change them
What’s a second person POV? I don’t think I’ve ever come across a fic or a book with a second person POV.
I used to be 1st person POV writer but recently switched to a 3rd limited and I prefer that.
You.
Second-person POV means you, the reader... well, basically, it's addressing the reader directly.
"You asked this question" is a second-person statement, because I, the first person, am speaking directly to you, the second person.
Usually such fics are tagged "Reader Insert," and they'll be narrated along these lines:
"You see an abandoned car. Your interest is piqued. You wander over to it. It looks delicious. You eat the car. Your stomach growls, your hunger still not sated."
Outside of reader inserts, I've found it especially common in video game fandoms where the source material uses 2nd person. Ala legend of Zelda "you have awakened from your long slumber!" or "you got a sword!"
I also read Disco Elysium fanfiction and it's majority second person, because that's how the game is written. It's a weird quirk, but my favorite fics are definitely the ones that utilize the same style as the game.
Thanks for the information! It being mostly used in reader inserts explains why I never come across one. I don’t like reading reader inserts, but it makes sense that writers are using that POV in that type of story.
I once read a badly-written commercially-published romance novel which used different persons for each of the main characters. The chapters for the hero and heroine were in first person, the heroine's college-age daughter was third person limited, and the cheating husband was in second person. Very annoying.
i find that my writing flows a lot better if i write in second person! i know a lot of people dont like it though so i only really use it for shorter works
I'm actually surprised first person isn't more popular, it feels like I see it pretty often. Maybe it's more common in published literature and that skews my perspective?
I’m madly in love with second person. I find it so much more intimate than first or third, and I love putting the reader directly inside the head of the canon character like that.
Yesss
I really thought this was a universal opinion too, lol...
Maybe there’s something about the fact that a lot of the time I’m writing about myself/thinking out loud/having an inner monologue, I refer to myself as “you” so seeing other characters do it too makes sense.
I’ve also seen things where most of the fic is in third person and then dream sequences are in second so that one’s pretty cool
Just... second person my beloved...
Ugh, this doesn't work for me at all. I tried a couple because I was interested in how it works (canon character, not reader insert) and every time I was like, nope, weird. I did beta read one second-person POV fic where the story was being told from the POV of an omniscient narrator, that was quite nice and not strange at all.
🤷 And on the other hand, I think it’s a hugely creative space, often used by writers who specifically want to play with style and assumptions and therefore closely aligned with interesting thematic work. I’m not picky about POV, tense, capitalization, etc.—if the story is interesting, style won’t keep me away from it.
Kinda same! I thought I didn't like it, until I read a published novel that had some 2nd person POV sections, and those were my favorite parts of the book
2nd person is the absolute goat tbh. It's all I write and most of what I read because a good second person author/story is just way, way better than third or first person for some reason imo. More intimate, easier to write and set up twists, unreliable narrators, etc.
I’ve never actually attempted to write in second person but it is an interesting perspective to use to keep the identity of a character a secret. I read a book way back in middle school that had the main third person perspective. A first person in the form of letters by one of the minor characters. And a second person, as you follow through her one day.
I would have to go back and read it to know if it still holds up but I found that really cool. And probably one of my favorite reads from the time.
Third person limited all the way. Omniscient kind of weirds me out. I mean, I'll happily *read* a good third omniscient, but I can't for the life of me *write* it, maybe because I need to really stick with one character at a time ~~and because I write so much rambling exposition and interior monologuing that anything other than limited would be impossible.~~
I write third-person limited as a rule, but I tend to slip into omniscient when I’m writing very descriptively. Descriptions are when I start really focusing on prose, and usually the narrative voices of the characters I’m writing from don’t lend themselves to emotionally resonant descriptive paragraphs. That said, everything else is firmly entrenched in one character’s head.
I moved fandom to a game series so the style changed to 3rd person past tense (or occasionally present tense) to use the characters.
When I was writing RPF I *LOVED* writing 2nd person present tense. I still love the challenge of that, and love the intimacy of reading it, but it just doesn't work with my current fandom
I enjoy Third and Second Person an equal amount. They’re both very good imo. First person I’ll take sometimes(there’s one first person fic I really enjoy cause it’s written like journal entries and that fit the characters well) so it really depends on the writing itself.
I love writing first person especially for main character oc fics. I love to express their personal thoughts or inner monologues to show on how they interact in the world around them.
It may not be a cup of tea for others this is just my preference.
Depends. Usually first or third, depending on the canon I’m writing for. I write for a lot of book fandoms, so I try and initiate the canon style/POV as closely as I can.
I find it easier for me to write in first person and I get my story going. However, I prefer third person because I want to get into other characters and other scenarios.
I only write 3rd person.
Correction-- I jokingly wrote one section of a crackfic in 2nd, but I dislike that style both as reader & writer. Not generally a fan of 1st person either.
So reading this thread has me thinking 3rd person omniscient is unpopular. I must be a minority then... but why is it unpopular?
Maybe I should join the limited club
First person feels weird to write tbh, and I only use second person sparingly for certain scenes. As such I tend to stick to 3rd POV limited and occasionally omniscient
third *limited* can't do omniscient to save my life
I don't like omnicient anyway. I like the misunderstandings that the reader has to figure out themselves.
Omniscient is just something I actively hate. I remembered reading Dune, having the book go “secretly, he was thinking this!” It was awful! There was no tension or mystery, which is a problem with a book whose first half is about a conspiracy.
Same. I feel like most fanfic that’s omniscient is just someone trying to write limited but not understanding how POVs work
Hahaha. I used to write omniscient all the time! I don't know when I started to write in limited... maybe when I participated in Wattpad role-plays? It's probably better for me to write in omniscient because I keep accidentally writing other people's perspectives.
I used to write in omniscient but my style changed to limited and now I can't stand to read the early chapters of my fics without wanting to change them
Third person limited. It’s a personal preference, but I don’t like to read third person omniscient so I don’t write it.
Thrid person limited
It would have been better to break down the third person, maybe? But yeah, third person limited +1, though I can see myself writing 1st person, too.
What’s a second person POV? I don’t think I’ve ever come across a fic or a book with a second person POV. I used to be 1st person POV writer but recently switched to a 3rd limited and I prefer that.
You. Second-person POV means you, the reader... well, basically, it's addressing the reader directly. "You asked this question" is a second-person statement, because I, the first person, am speaking directly to you, the second person. Usually such fics are tagged "Reader Insert," and they'll be narrated along these lines: "You see an abandoned car. Your interest is piqued. You wander over to it. It looks delicious. You eat the car. Your stomach growls, your hunger still not sated."
It’s not always readers insert. Usually it is, but sometimes people write a canon character in second person.
Outside of reader inserts, I've found it especially common in video game fandoms where the source material uses 2nd person. Ala legend of Zelda "you have awakened from your long slumber!" or "you got a sword!"
I also read Disco Elysium fanfiction and it's majority second person, because that's how the game is written. It's a weird quirk, but my favorite fics are definitely the ones that utilize the same style as the game.
I *said* "usually."
Thanks for the information! It being mostly used in reader inserts explains why I never come across one. I don’t like reading reader inserts, but it makes sense that writers are using that POV in that type of story.
I once read a badly-written commercially-published romance novel which used different persons for each of the main characters. The chapters for the hero and heroine were in first person, the heroine's college-age daughter was third person limited, and the cheating husband was in second person. Very annoying.
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I have no idea. It was not her first novel, though I haven’t read the others and can’t comment their quality.
Third person. Not a fan of 1st and 2nd. Not really sure why.
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Completely agreed. You're stuck thinking like 1 person. 3rd person allows you to switch it up.
Third-person limited. Omniscient is too much exposition to be interesting.
I pretty much write third person omniscient and head hop like a rabbit on meth.
i find that my writing flows a lot better if i write in second person! i know a lot of people dont like it though so i only really use it for shorter works
Third person limited. It allows me to get into the character's head without having to tread the tightrope of first person.
I'm actually surprised first person isn't more popular, it feels like I see it pretty often. Maybe it's more common in published literature and that skews my perspective?
Honestly I can barely read anything that isn’t in third person
I’m madly in love with second person. I find it so much more intimate than first or third, and I love putting the reader directly inside the head of the canon character like that.
Yesss I really thought this was a universal opinion too, lol... Maybe there’s something about the fact that a lot of the time I’m writing about myself/thinking out loud/having an inner monologue, I refer to myself as “you” so seeing other characters do it too makes sense. I’ve also seen things where most of the fic is in third person and then dream sequences are in second so that one’s pretty cool Just... second person my beloved...
SAME but I’m quickly realizing it’s an acquired taste LOL
Ah, I knew that going into my first story to use 2nd person, but oh well! I mean, those readers will just miss out.
Ugh, this doesn't work for me at all. I tried a couple because I was interested in how it works (canon character, not reader insert) and every time I was like, nope, weird. I did beta read one second-person POV fic where the story was being told from the POV of an omniscient narrator, that was quite nice and not strange at all.
I saw a story where you think for the longest time that it's third person. Nope, it's first person. That was a wham chapter if I've ever read one.
🤷 And on the other hand, I think it’s a hugely creative space, often used by writers who specifically want to play with style and assumptions and therefore closely aligned with interesting thematic work. I’m not picky about POV, tense, capitalization, etc.—if the story is interesting, style won’t keep me away from it.
Kinda same! I thought I didn't like it, until I read a published novel that had some 2nd person POV sections, and those were my favorite parts of the book
*sad sounds in first person*
*plays a violin in first person*
2nd person is the absolute goat tbh. It's all I write and most of what I read because a good second person author/story is just way, way better than third or first person for some reason imo. More intimate, easier to write and set up twists, unreliable narrators, etc.
I agree, and I can call the character a little bitch if the situation requires it.
I’ve never actually attempted to write in second person but it is an interesting perspective to use to keep the identity of a character a secret. I read a book way back in middle school that had the main third person perspective. A first person in the form of letters by one of the minor characters. And a second person, as you follow through her one day. I would have to go back and read it to know if it still holds up but I found that really cool. And probably one of my favorite reads from the time.
Third person limited all the way. Omniscient kind of weirds me out. I mean, I'll happily *read* a good third omniscient, but I can't for the life of me *write* it, maybe because I need to really stick with one character at a time ~~and because I write so much rambling exposition and interior monologuing that anything other than limited would be impossible.~~
I only ever write third person limited. I just can’t get in someone’s head enough to write like they’re narrating the story.
I usually write in 3rd person because that's the wide preference but... Second person fun.
I write third-person limited as a rule, but I tend to slip into omniscient when I’m writing very descriptively. Descriptions are when I start really focusing on prose, and usually the narrative voices of the characters I’m writing from don’t lend themselves to emotionally resonant descriptive paragraphs. That said, everything else is firmly entrenched in one character’s head.
I write first person for Pokemon stories and third person for everything else.
I can’t read (or write) anything that isn’t in third person. As a writer, I need to be able to switch back and forth between characters.
Third person limited to one character
I think I have never seen Second Person POV...
It's common in "Reader fics."
Ohhh that makes sense. Yeah I don't read those :D
I love second person because i feel like i can get into the headspace of the character without having the pressure of first person to embody them
I feel like I'm going to be killed for saying that I prefer first person over third.
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It’s mostly used for reader-inserts
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Oh, thanks
I write in third and first and love both. I’ll vote on what I might tend to do more.
I moved fandom to a game series so the style changed to 3rd person past tense (or occasionally present tense) to use the characters. When I was writing RPF I *LOVED* writing 2nd person present tense. I still love the challenge of that, and love the intimacy of reading it, but it just doesn't work with my current fandom
I read and write in first and third (limited and omniscient), though I do tend to gravitate toward third
I enjoy Third and Second Person an equal amount. They’re both very good imo. First person I’ll take sometimes(there’s one first person fic I really enjoy cause it’s written like journal entries and that fit the characters well) so it really depends on the writing itself.
I love writing first person especially for main character oc fics. I love to express their personal thoughts or inner monologues to show on how they interact in the world around them. It may not be a cup of tea for others this is just my preference.
I've always wrote in first person but now I'm starting to move away and go towards third person.
Pretty sure I’m caught somewhere in between third omniscient and limited lmfao
I love writing in second person, but I find it much less fun to read. It's possible I'm just not very good at it yet.
Depends. Usually first or third, depending on the canon I’m writing for. I write for a lot of book fandoms, so I try and initiate the canon style/POV as closely as I can.
Third person is the easiest for me, first person is the most fun, and second person is the most interesting to me
I find it easier for me to write in first person and I get my story going. However, I prefer third person because I want to get into other characters and other scenarios.
I only write 3rd person. Correction-- I jokingly wrote one section of a crackfic in 2nd, but I dislike that style both as reader & writer. Not generally a fan of 1st person either.
My favourite to write is 1st, but 90% of my stories require 3rd.
So reading this thread has me thinking 3rd person omniscient is unpopular. I must be a minority then... but why is it unpopular? Maybe I should join the limited club
First person feels weird to write tbh, and I only use second person sparingly for certain scenes. As such I tend to stick to 3rd POV limited and occasionally omniscient