Point of views: how do you handle them

[Aprella]

I couldn't directly find a topic about this, so I decided to make one.

I am co-writing a fantasy series with a friend and we have decided to split the writing by point of views. Now the problem is that we have two point of view characters that will spent quite sometime together and I'm wondering how it's best to switch between them. Later in the story they will split up, but that will take a while. And we want to give insight in both characters' heads. One of them has some major emotional troubles which is an important plot factor.
We have two other point of views on other places, but we cannot use them to much to make some kind of bridge since it would give too much away.
If anyone has tips about this or knows a book where they switch between point of views of characters who are close together, please share since I would love to read that!

 

[Penpilot]

Game of Thrones starts off with a bunch of different POV characters in close proximity that split and go off on their own. Throughout the series there are instances where multiple POV characters are in close proximity and the story is seen through eacch of their eyes.

Generally, people say which POV you use in a scene is dependant on who has the most emotional stakes in the outcome of the scene, so you have to design and find the scenes that mean the most to the chosen POV.

 

[MFreako]

I'll only have two (or more) POVs in the same chapter if they're very close geographically. Otherwise, I'd dedicate an entire chapter to a single POV. I use section breaks whenever I switch from one POV to the other.

 

[Spider]

I once read a book (can't remember the title, sorry) where the POVs alternated between a brother and a sister each chapter. The two of them had different personalities so it made an interesting contrast with some comic relief as well. If I were you, I would switch chapters as the POVs change, and maybe put the name of the character under the chapter number.

 

[Aprella]

Hmm okay Thanks for the tip!

We thought about the chapter thing as well but that might result in rather short chapters.

 

[Caged Maiden]

I use several points of view in my current WIP. But I switch them freely within chapters. Each chapter is a day and might follow one or more characters. So if one character has gone off on his own without telling another, I use the POV of the person searching for him. If I'm showing a tense situation between two characters, I go with the one who has the most emotional stake in the confrontation. I try to give MC's more time in the spotlight to emphasize their importance, but I also give secondary characters a short turn, mostly so the reader can get a balanced perspective from the other side of the coin now and again.

Of course, this is the most points of view I've ever used, so in most of my other novels, I only use one or two. That takes the questions out of who and when to show.

 

[Aprella]

Okay thanks for the advice.

Right now we have point of views planned. All that show insight in the story and view happenings from a different perspective.

 

[deilaitha]

Any of the Thomas Covenant (particularly the second chronicles) or Gap books by Stephen R. Donaldson are excellent examples of this. It is effective, especially when you want 3rd limited or 1st person, but you have a lot of ground to cover.