Dual Perspectives within Same Story

[Voyeurkenneth]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

In my head, the shifting of perspectives feels like it may get confusing/tiresome or leave the reader feeling detached. But I'm intrigued by the structure.

Any good examples on Lit? Recommendations?

 

[ElectricBlue]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

In my head, the shifting of perspectives feels like it may get confusing/tiresome or leave the reader feeling detached. But I'm intrigued by the structure.

Any good examples on Lit? Recommendations?

Not first person, but plenty of times using close third. That's my "go to" point of view these days.

Using close third solves any narrative conflicts that might pop with first person pov swaps.

 

[Bamagan]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

In my head, the shifting of perspectives feels like it may get confusing/tiresome or leave the reader feeling detached. But I'm intrigued by the structure.

Any good examples on Lit? Recommendations?

A few times. It's a good narrative device if you're aiming for ambiguity about the events of the story. Close third person can achieve much the same effect, with perhaps a little more narrative authority regarding what the POV characters are thinking and feeling. Dual first person can be nice if you want one or both (or all) POV characters to be somewhat unreliable, as they convey conflicting accounts of story events in a way that leaves the reader to determine or choose which (if any) is most truthful.

For example, perhaps one party (A) has romantic feelings and interprets every gesture their partner (B) makes very rosily, as signs of love and devotion. Meanwhile, B is mostly just playing a role; they care about A, but their actions are somewhat insincere and mean much less than A believes. Perhaps B is being manipulative, or perhaps they're doing the best they can to reciprocate despite the relative lack of depth to their feelings. Perhaps A is completely fooled, or perhaps they interpret the feigned emotions of B to be equally as meaningful as genuine ones would... if not more so, in some ways.

Certain readers might become detached if one of the narrative perspectives is far outside what is relatable to them, but I don't think that will be a huge percentage of the audience. Confusion is easily allayed with clear transitions of perspective like a dinkus (* * *) or the similar (except when Lit fails to render them properly, of course).

 

[StillStunned]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

I hate it with the fire of a thousand suns. I've come across it in several acclaimed fantasy books lately, and to me it feels like the writer is using 1P as a cheap way to engage the reader, but then has to tell the story from different POVs. It's confusing the first time the POV shifts, and it's difficult to track who's POV it is.

But I've come to realise that I'm not the intended readership for those books, so I'll let you decide how much weight my opinion should carry.

 

[Actingup]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

In my head, the shifting of perspectives feels like it may get confusing/tiresome or leave the reader feeling detached. But I'm intrigued by the structure.

Any good examples on Lit? Recommendations?

Penny and I did it in our joint story (link below), and then shifted to a third perspective at the end. I wouldn't do it frequently, but this one was a considered decision as we wanted to tell a split and reconciliation story from the perspective of a couple and their daughter. Of more than 200 comments, I don't think anybody complained about the shifting perspectives. Whether this is a 'good' example or not I don't know, but I think it's possible to make it work in the right context.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I have.

And so have I.

 

[Cagivagurl]

Personal opinion only....
I detest it completely.
1st person is to allow the reader (Me into the character) Feel their emotions, the pain, joy and confusion. By cutting back and forth from one character to another. It kicks me out of my zone...
There have been many authors who have used i, but it rarely works (In my opinion)
If you need to see inside different heads, and their thoughts. Don't use 1st person.... There are other options...

 

[anthrodisiac]

Sorry, couldn't help myself earlier

Yes, I have. It's a fun tool for exploring a story from different angles. The handful of times I've done it, I've done it with characters that have wildly different voices, so the word choice, focus, and structure were, naturally, quite different.

@Bamagan is right, it's a great tool for dual unreliable narrations. The ambiguity and interpretation of events can differ wildly, one person focusing on certain aspects of the event, the other focusing on something completely different. Often it's used when pitting the voices against each other, again, like Bamagan mentioned.

But it definitely has drawbacks, and a lot of people have fairly visceral reactions because they like narrative consistency and it can be quite jarring to jump back and forth between two very different individuals in a way that close third doesn't. Primarily because of the voice shift, I think.

I think if you're using it, you're using it as a device in and of itself, in addition to the vehicle for narration. You want to evoke something specific, or intentionally disorient the reader (good for tense, abstract sci-fi/fantasy), or show the effects the two characters have on each other on a deep, visceral level that you can't quite get with close third. Or if you want to dive into the psychology behind two or more (I'm sure every writer within 100 miles of me shuddered when I wrote that, a dark wind sweeping through their souls from the abyss, a billion voices crying out in pain) different individuals. Or if you like deeper "thinky" pieces, but don't want to be stuck in one head the whole time.

There are plenty of niche cases for it, but it is primarily a niche tool and should be used incredibly intentionally.

 

[AlinaX]

I’ve done it. I quite often have one character narrating as first person and switch to others as third person. In Internude, I ended up with one character as 1st person present, another as 1st person past, and others as 3rd person past.

Because it’s confusing, it’s important to identify the speaking character whenever there’s a switch, e.g.:

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to wear high heels and a skirt... The shoes he gave me aren't so bad, and I have skirts I don't wear often enough... Such as a black, denim mini-skirt, Desigual, that I've yet to wear at all. Hmm...

[Marcus]

Keira was on the bus! I had been so worried that my outrageous use of her the previous day would send her running for her sanity, that she would be too terrified of further abuse to dare being near the campus ever again, but no, she was on the bus, her eyes meeting mine for an instant. So much was said in that brief, shocking moment of connection. Recognition. Understanding. Fear. Anger.

 

[Andreas_Kreuz]

I have used this technique extensively in one story. I thought it was fun, and the result made me happy. See here: https://literotica.com/s/wolves-will-hunt-you
The rating of 2.29 tells you that it did not work for most readers. Part of this might be due to the LW category, where readers react with either love or hate.

 

[Britva415]

Has anyone tried their hand at dual 1st person perspectives within the same story? Any thoughts, generally?

In my head, the shifting of perspectives feels like it may get confusing/tiresome or leave the reader feeling detached. But I'm intrigued by the structure.

Any good examples on Lit? Recommendations?

Do you only want good examples and recommendations? Or would any negative, "don't do it!" style reactions be welcome?

 

[Britva415]

Not first person, but plenty of times using close third. That's my "go to" point of view these days.

Using close third solves any narrative conflicts that might pop with first person pov swaps.

It probably also completely solves the "frame" problem, the problem of an in-universe frame which explains, indicatesd or even merely suggests why, how and to whom these two first-person perspectives are being told at all.

Where "why" does not mean some out-of-universe, fourth-wall-breaking reason, and "how" does not mean "well, the author did it," and "to whom" does not mean "an out-of-universe reader neither of these narrators can possibly have any relationship with."

I mean, even a single-point of view first-person story usually has that issue. It's exponentially less cromulent when multiple POVs are present.

Most versions of third-person voice and POV eliminate this irritation.

I'm intrigued by the structure

There's no reason third-person can't satisfy the "structure" of shifting perspectives.

 

[redgarters]

I've done it, in a sequel to a story where the MC's object of desire was nameless.

I wanted to switch the pov to her in the sequel, to keep the mystery of her name for a while and to deepen her character. But I also didn't want to lose the feelings and internal dialogue of the original MC.

So in that instance it served to widen the narrative while preserving the 1p pov style of the first part.

It worked, I think. I may have overdone it though, switching pov in the middle of a sex scene

 

[anthrodisiac]

It worked, I think. I may have overdone it though, switching pov in the middle of a sex scene..

I died a little reading that. I jest... ish.

 

[THBGato]

Personal opinion only....
I detest it completely.
1st person is to allow the reader (Me into the character) Feel their emotions, the pain, joy and confusion. By cutting back and forth from one character to another. It kicks me out of my zone...

Now I feel really bad for asking you to beta-read What a difference a day makes... (which uses alternating first person narrators).

I've used it a few times, including on stories that have gone to number 1 in category (Eve & Lucy, The Third Date). So, clearly readers here don't object to it that strongly.

When I use it, I do it because I want the reader to see the outcome before the characters do - I want the reader to be anticipating what's coming, to feel like they are in on it, to be excited for it, before the penny drops for the characters.

Have yourself a joyeux petit noel by @redgarters is an excellent use of dual first person narrators.

 

[anthrodisiac]

It worked, I think. I may have overdone it though, switching pov in the middle of a sex scene

I died a little reading that. I jest... ish.

To be fair, I've done much worse with POV. I did an experimental piece with six characters and bounced between their heads from paragraph to paragraph. Telepathy hive mind consciousness-horror piece, struggle for autonomy against a collective thought-beast comprised of a million souls, deliberately chaotic to help heighten the tension and agony and struggle.

It was terrible Don't recommend.

So switching POV in the middle of a sex scene is fairly anodyne compared to the horrors I've unleashed upon the lands. And I am atoning for it to this day, and shall for all my earthly years and probably several reincarnations on.

 

[redgarters]

It was terrible Don't recommend.

I must admit, I'm equal parts horrified and intrigued...

 

[BeechLeaf]

There's a very good use of it in sub_marine's funny and touching series The Stooges. The narrator is Casey all through parts 1 and 2 and most of part 3, then Connie announces she'll be your alternative narrator for part of it. After that they do alternate, making it clear with asides to the reader. As long as you remember to switch voices in your head, it remains clear, and as a stylistic device it works well.

 

[StillStunned]

I hate it with the fire of a thousand suns.

And yet... WIWAW: Too Cold Not to Fuck

(For anyone who doesn't want to read it: the WIWAW starts with me - the writer - explaining the background to my series "My Little Sister Sal", but then "Sal" jumps in to tell events from her perspective. "I can speak for myself, you know. I don't need some middle-aged bloke to do it for me.")

 

[TaniaTulle]

I’ve done it before, and I was really pleased with how it turned out.

It was part of a long-running series that, up to that point, had been written entirely in first person from a single character’s perspective. Much later in the story (around Part 11, I think), I needed to show events unfolding away from the main character, so I switched to another character’s point of view.

I made the shift very clear with a header that included the character’s name, and I generally kept each perspective in longer sections to avoid confusion. I also wrote a little note that I was going to do this in the intro (I always included a little 'previously on...' text for each part).

The story was a thriller, so I wanted the reader to have access to information the main character didn’t know. As a device, it worked really well for building tension in key scenes. It was also effective for exploring conflicted emotions, since the two characters were friends falling in love but were afraid to reveal their feelings to each other.

I also dared to use the dual perspective in a sex scene. Switching viewpoints allowed me to step into each character’s head and show their feelings, worries, and desires as they took that next step together.

I haven’t used the technique since, mainly because I haven’t had a story where it felt necessary. That said, I don’t share the dislike some people have for it. In this case, I felt it served the story well, and I didn’t receive any complaints from readers about it being confusing or immersion-breaking.

My advice would be to make it very clear who is thinking or speaking—formatting can help with that—and to establish a strong sense of flow or rhythm between the perspectives. At times, it felt a bit like writing a duet: you have to make sure each switch feels natural and well-timed. The characters should have distinct voices, and those voices need to work in harmony.

 

[Bamagan]

(For anyone who doesn't want to read it:

You mean all those other people whose scorn is measured in ronnawatts?

(Science alert: The sun's energy output is about 380 yottawatts per second. That's septillions, or 380 x 10^24, so a thousand more is octillions of watts (10^27), called ronna-{whatever unit}.)

 

[anthrodisiac]

I must admit, I'm equal parts horrified and intrigued...

So 100% horrified and 100% intrigued?

 

[BobbyBrandt]

When done correctly and done well, it can work. I wish that I could cite some examples of this, but...

Consistency and continuity are usually the first aspects of the story to suffer if the characters don't remain in sync. Avoiding redundancies and repetition can also be a challenge, but the proper conveyance of frequently opposing emotions of the characters is where I usually see the writer failing.

 

[Erozetta]

The Magician's Doll

I did it here and people seem to like it. One comment that it was confusing, nineteen praising it, including some pointing out the dual perspectives in particular. At least one said they normally don't like that but it worked here.

My reasoning for doing dual perspectives was basically if I didn't it was going to look like a sexual assault/attempted sexual assault on a crowded train. I wanted to stress that both characters were into it and everyone was happy with the outcome. Plus it was inspired by a clip from an Italian movie where the camera kinda switches back and forth and I wanted to play into that in a way that close third just didn't cut it.

 

[TheLobster]

It can work if you have an outer scaffolding that frames a Rashomon-style story, but I wouldn't try it otherwise.