Advanced Writing Technology

[Benjamin Clayborne]

In George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones (and its many sequels), each chapter is titled with the name of whichever character's POV that chapter is written in: EDDARD, ARYA, TYRION, and so forth.

But the chapters are not numbered. This bothers me to no end, mainly because these are books that I discuss incessantly with people, and not being able to refer to particular chapters by an unambiguous identifier drives me nuts. (This might have something to do with the fact that I'm a programmer by trade, so identifier ambiguity is anathema to me.)

I really liked the practice of titling each chapter with its POV character, though. It meant that as soon as I turned the page, I knew whose POV I was going to be reading. That was something that had always jarred me a little bit with the Wheel of Time series: You don't know for sure who the POV character is in each chapter until you've read a couple of sentences (or sometimes more, depending). It's not a huge deal, but it is a little off-putting to read a sentence or two, realize who the POV is, and then have to go back and reassess what you just read based on that new information. (Jordan did include a clue, namely the little picture/glyph atop each chapter, which tended to–but did not always–correspond to the POV character; e.g. a pair of dice means Mat, a wolf's head means Perrin; but then a white/black mask meant "darkfriends" and that could be just about anyone.)

For these reasons, when writing THE QUEEN OF MAGES, I decided to title each chapter with both a number and with the POV character's name: "CHAPTER 1 / AMIRA". To me, this is a superior way to do things, because 1) it unambiguously identifies each chapter (no more saying "In Amira's sixth chapter... or was it seventh? You know, the one where..."), and 2) since the POV is shifting every chapter, it lets you know immediatey whose chapter it is. (The one exception are the three interlude chapters, but each of those is from the POV of a separate character, non-repeating, and so are unambiguously identifiable.)

This is all prologue (sorry, Steerpike) toward asking the following question: How important do you think things like this are? Clearly the story itself is always the most important thing; but how the actual story text is presented can, I think, make a big impact on the reading experience. It smooths the way and removes a hurdle (however tiny) toward understanding and enjoying the story.

 

[Penpilot]

To me chapter numbers aren't aren't that important. If I want to refer to a specific part in the story, I just refer to it temporally. I rarely remember what chapter something happens in. As for Game of Thrones, I like the names on the chapters. In instances like this, it's more meaningful than chapter numbers and for a book with such a large cast of POV characters it definitely helps the reader orient themselves quickly from chapter to chapter. I think it was a smart move.

I can't say for sure, but just on my initial reaction seeing a chapter name and then a character name seems odd. Maybe it has to do with my personal expectations. Usually when I see chapter numbers and words together the words are a chapter title.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

I really like setting the POV with the chapter name as well. The current story I'm working on does it like this:

Ben-1, PenPilot-1, Reaver-1, Ben-2, etc.

The chapters are numbered in sequence of the POV only. For now they're only numbered for organization with the intention being to drop the numbers for names only once complete.

I agree with PenPilot though.... I never refer to chapter numbers or names. It's always just talking about events in scenes.

 

[Philip Overby]

I didn't so much find the lack of numbering bothersome in Martin's books either. Mostly because his scenes are so powerful I could just say something like: "You remember that scene with Bran climbing the castle walls?" Everyone who's read those books knows what scene I'm talking about. I think if the scenes stand out enough, then I don't really have a need for chapter numbers. However, in my own writing I typically use chapter numbers just because it helps me if I need to go back and change something. I'm not so sure if it will be helpful to the reader or not. My biggest hope is that people think of my writing the same way and say: "Remember that scene with the badger battling the dragon in the bath house?"

 

[Anders Ämting]

I like to keep chapters numbered, but I don't see myself naming them after the POV character. I prefer to give my chapters individual titles instead. I don't typically use a lot of POV characters, and even if I did I think I would rather let the readers figure out by themselves which one they are reading. There's a limit to how much handholding I'm willing to bother with.

 

[Zero Angel]

I really like setting the POV with the chapter name as well. The current story I'm working on does it like this:

Ben-1, PenPilot-1, Reaver-1, Ben-2, etc.

This is what I would have liked to see from Martin! Although I feel Roman numerals should be used instead of Arabic ones.

I have a lot of fun naming my chapters!

For instance, in my first novel the protagonist goes through a ritual where he is warned "The dead must not kill the living" and this becomes the title of the next chapter where the characters...

Spoiler: I guess it is a little obvious...

End up fighting undead!

.

 

[Christopher Wright]

It really depends on the book.

As I mentioned in another post, for my first novel what I did was adopt a sort of old-timey WHEREIN convention for each chapter title (i.e., chapter one is "WHEREIN the Woods, Noting Our Hero's Sudden Departure, Resolve to Give Chase") because a) it was kind of funny because it was a space opera, b) it sort of set the stage for the primary conflict/revelation/development of the chapter.

My second novel (in process) is a modern fantasy, and the POV is third person but wholly focused on the protagonist, so there'd be no need to call out who it featured.[1] Instead the chapter titles are sort of vague ("Through the Trees," "The Party," "Dust") but specific to something important in each chapter.

For a third project I'm working on, which is modeled after comic books, my chapters tend to call out the location rather than the character (though there are two instances where it calls out the character) so, for example "Farraday City Boardwalk" and "Manhattan, 1977".

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[1] Chapter One: Matthew. Chapter Two: Matthew. Chapter Three: Matthew. Chapter Four: YEAH WE GET IT.

 

[Lorna]

I like chapters to have numbers and names. The name gives a taste of what there is to look forward to and a reference to find your favourite bits again. Plus, being able to flick back through the chapter names if you've put a book down for a couple of days helps.

If it's multiple POV book, the name of the POV character at the top would be helpful too.

I'd expect numbers at least.

Just character names... no navigational help at all. That would annoy me.

 

[BWFoster78]

I definitely like chapter numbers. If, for example, I lose my place, I can find it by remembering that I was in Chapter 20 (or, more relevant to present day, I'm reading something on my Nook, don't sync, and start reading it on my phone).

As for POV, it depends.

If it's first person, the name as part of the chapter helps a lot. Otherwise it's hard to get the POV character's identity into the chapter. If it's third person, it's not needed unless you fail to quickly identify the POV character. I always use the POV character's name in the first sentence.

 

[Christopher Wright]

I would think that if it's first person you would always know who the person telling the story is, unless it's a multiple 1st person story, which isn't something I see often. Still in a multiple first-person story I could definitely see how identifying the person would be necessary. That would be a nightmare.

 

[BWFoster78]

I would think that if it's first person you would always know who the person telling the story is, unless it's a multiple 1st person story, which isn't something I see often. Still in a multiple first-person story I could definitely see how identifying the person would be necessary. That would be a nightmare.

All Jodi Picoult's books are multiple first person. The chapter name indicates the narrator. I think it works well.