tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10581466.post7101957019407438319..comments2023-10-29T05:33:19.321-04:00Comments on Murder and Mayhem: Point of ViewElizabeth Kerri Mahonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10581466.post-106984323666522582007-08-27T16:25:00.000-04:002007-08-27T16:25:00.000-04:00Thanks Carole. I love your Irene Adler books. I k...Thanks Carole. I love your Irene Adler books. I keep hoping some intelligent producer will option them for the BBC!Elizabeth Kerri Mahonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07763642809052430107noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10581466.post-59510994730802265972007-08-27T09:44:00.000-04:002007-08-27T09:44:00.000-04:00"Most mystery novels are written in the point of v..."Most mystery novels are written in the point of view of whoever is investigating the mystery, whether from first person point of view or third person point of view. Occasionally, in novels, you might have sections narrated in third person from the point of view of the killer." <BR/><BR/>Usually the suspnse novel uses the killer's POV more often than mysteries. That's because traditional first person POV is limiting. Which is why I expanded my later Irene Adler novels to multiple points of view, sometimes with "diaries" or writings to maintain the historical feel.<BR/><BR/>"Carole Nelson Douglas used this to effect in one of her Irene Adler mysteries. Part of the reason most mystery novelists stick to one point of view is that the reader knows just as much as the protagonist does about whodunnit. Clues are revealed to the reader as they are revealed to the detective."<BR/><BR/>In my Midnight Louie feline sleuth mysteries I combine the classic detective novel first person POV (in this case first-person-feline PI) with third person POVS from four major human characters. And since this is a long-runing series, even some secondary characters are getting brief POV sections now.<BR/><BR/>Using multiple points of view can be tricky, yet rewarding. Mary Higgins Clark made her career on very short sections with dozens of POV characters, many of them incidental, but all adding up to a more complete picture of the plot and its tensions.<BR/><BR/>P.S. A member of Sisters in Crime writing organization tipped me off to the Google alerts feature that looks up key words all over the Internet, which is how I found Elizabeth's blog. Fun! Good luck with your writing, Elizabeth. I'm a Scorpio too!<BR/><BR/>Carole Nelson DouglasCarole Nelson Douglashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01431995799842117842noreply@blogger.com