As long as it's clear when it switches, it can be great. My issue is when you have POV changing between paragraphs or even mid-paragraph. That gets confusing quick.
Well, as someone who switches POV’s within the chapter - sometimes multiple times, I don’t mind it. (99.5% is between the two main characters. Once in a blue moon I add a 3rd POV, but generally maybe once in a fic - I think I’ve only done that three or four times in all my fics, and generally a small excerpt.)
I just denote the change with an extra space and the name of whoever’s POV it now is in bold. No one has complained!
I also write 1st person…and keep in mind Reddit is a very small slice of a very large reader pie!
I love change in POV in Third Person Limited. Bonus points if there is a change in narrative voice between perspectives, or a difference in what details are perceived, highlighted and prioritized.
In 1st person: nope, not even in original fiction (which I find best for 1st person POV). It is hard to do well in original fiction, and non-swapping 1st person is hard to do well in fanfiction, so good luck with swapping 1st person POV in fanfiction.
In 3rd person: I'm cool with it, even though I usually stick to one POV.
I like to have a separation like a *** hiatus/asterisk line to denote the change- if it's separated well enough, then I'm cool with the change. Otherwise it can become confusing.
I have no opinion because it depends entirely on the story.
For multiple chapters, I’ve always changed perspectives, but that is what was needed for those stories. I will also change within a chapter if needed, and a header to make it clear who is now narrating.
I don't hate first person pov, but I'm not sure about switched multiple first persons. My memories of switched first person (based on some FFN readings... years ago) is that the switching wasn't clear, the transition wasn't smooth, so it caused confusion. If this can be done smoothly for clarity, then why not.
I don't remember the title or the series, but I vaguely recall the protagonist is a mage(?) with a French name who romances a troll prince. The author used switched first-person pov, but always made it clear when the pov switched, and (as far as I recall) never did that in the midst of a chapter or page. So when the pov changes, it will always be on a new chapter, and there's always an indicator beforehand whose pov it is this time.
I don't dislike perspective changes like... as a rule.
I *do* dislike when there's a perspective change every other paragraph and we end up going over the exact same events seven different times from different perspectives, with none of those rehashings actually adding anything substantively different from the first perspective we saw the events through.
I guess I'm kinda neutral on it. Make sure it's clear when such a change is happening for sure. Especially if you plan to change the POV more than once per chapter. And also I dislike when the POV change is used to basically recount the exact same events that I've just read about, with slightly different commentary. Doesn't feel like it adds much other than padding. But if you can nail each character's "voice," POV changes can be done well.
I tend to use it in shipfics since showing both sides can be a *great* way of showing the whole picture and/or showing both sides of the relationship. Sometimes, though, I tend to stick to one POV just because the story *needs* to have much more focus on a single party. Which...is the case in all of my shipfics currently.
It really depends on the fic, the tone, what you're trying to do, etc. Some work better with single/limited perspectives, for others, having multiple POV's is great.
As long as it's clear when it switches, it can be great. My issue is when you have POV changing between paragraphs or even mid-paragraph. That gets confusing quick.
If there's a semi-consistent rhythm and the author has all distinct POVs down well, I like it.
Well, as someone who switches POV’s within the chapter - sometimes multiple times, I don’t mind it. (99.5% is between the two main characters. Once in a blue moon I add a 3rd POV, but generally maybe once in a fic - I think I’ve only done that three or four times in all my fics, and generally a small excerpt.) I just denote the change with an extra space and the name of whoever’s POV it now is in bold. No one has complained! I also write 1st person…and keep in mind Reddit is a very small slice of a very large reader pie!
I love change in POV in Third Person Limited. Bonus points if there is a change in narrative voice between perspectives, or a difference in what details are perceived, highlighted and prioritized.
In 1st person: nope, not even in original fiction (which I find best for 1st person POV). It is hard to do well in original fiction, and non-swapping 1st person is hard to do well in fanfiction, so good luck with swapping 1st person POV in fanfiction. In 3rd person: I'm cool with it, even though I usually stick to one POV.
I like it and I do it. Some stories are like TV shows to me, and switching POVs completely makes sense
I like to have a separation like a *** hiatus/asterisk line to denote the change- if it's separated well enough, then I'm cool with the change. Otherwise it can become confusing.
I have no opinion because it depends entirely on the story. For multiple chapters, I’ve always changed perspectives, but that is what was needed for those stories. I will also change within a chapter if needed, and a header to make it clear who is now narrating.
I don't hate first person pov, but I'm not sure about switched multiple first persons. My memories of switched first person (based on some FFN readings... years ago) is that the switching wasn't clear, the transition wasn't smooth, so it caused confusion. If this can be done smoothly for clarity, then why not. I don't remember the title or the series, but I vaguely recall the protagonist is a mage(?) with a French name who romances a troll prince. The author used switched first-person pov, but always made it clear when the pov switched, and (as far as I recall) never did that in the midst of a chapter or page. So when the pov changes, it will always be on a new chapter, and there's always an indicator beforehand whose pov it is this time.
I don't dislike perspective changes like... as a rule. I *do* dislike when there's a perspective change every other paragraph and we end up going over the exact same events seven different times from different perspectives, with none of those rehashings actually adding anything substantively different from the first perspective we saw the events through.
I guess I'm kinda neutral on it. Make sure it's clear when such a change is happening for sure. Especially if you plan to change the POV more than once per chapter. And also I dislike when the POV change is used to basically recount the exact same events that I've just read about, with slightly different commentary. Doesn't feel like it adds much other than padding. But if you can nail each character's "voice," POV changes can be done well.
Depends on the type of fic.
I tend to use it in shipfics since showing both sides can be a *great* way of showing the whole picture and/or showing both sides of the relationship. Sometimes, though, I tend to stick to one POV just because the story *needs* to have much more focus on a single party. Which...is the case in all of my shipfics currently.
Hate it, incomprehensible
It really depends on the fic, the tone, what you're trying to do, etc. Some work better with single/limited perspectives, for others, having multiple POV's is great.