I got into a discussion on this in another forum, where someone criticized a new writer for having a first-person narrative that gives information the POV character can't know. The criticism boiled down to "you can't do that."
I don't know about the rest of you, but I've seen it done a lot in established literature over the years. Take a line from To Kill A Mockingbird, which I think everyone will agree is an established and well-respected piece of fiction:
"Put on your coat," Atticus said dreamily, so I didn't hear."
(Thanks to Mckk at writingforums.org for finding this example; particularly since he was the one arguing against doing it)
Scout is narrating in first person and relating something she didn't hear. There are many examples of this in literature. It doesn't bother me, though I guess it rubs some people wrong. Is anyone else bothered by such things?
I don't know about the rest of you, but I've seen it done a lot in established literature over the years. Take a line from To Kill A Mockingbird, which I think everyone will agree is an established and well-respected piece of fiction:
"Put on your coat," Atticus said dreamily, so I didn't hear."
(Thanks to Mckk at writingforums.org for finding this example; particularly since he was the one arguing against doing it)
Scout is narrating in first person and relating something she didn't hear. There are many examples of this in literature. It doesn't bother me, though I guess it rubs some people wrong. Is anyone else bothered by such things?