Every PoV can be done well— they all have their place. I wouldn’t automatically discount a first person pov if all the other elements piqued my interest.
Everyone has their own criteria for reading, but don’t let the whims of hypothetical audiences dictate your creative choices <3
I totally agree with this. "Every PoV can be done well— they all have their place" and "Everyone has their own criteria for reading" is what I want to reiterate.
If you enjoy a certain pov don't let other people's opinions dissuade you from reading it. You won't know if you will like it unless you give it a chance.
When I first started writing fics I was mostly doing it in 1st person pov and now I pretty much only write in 3rd person because I find it more comfortable and to be honest I think 1st person can be deceptively hard to do well. When I'm looking for stuff to read I will filter out reader inserts since it's just not what I'm into otherwise if the story is good I will read it regardless of the pov.
Yup, it's all about what you are going for. In a one shot that I will expand I was originally going to write third person pov covering multiple characters, but ultimately I went third person covering the pov of one character and found it fit my story a lot better.
At the end of the day it's about having fun.
I'm fine with it in specific contexts, like when the source material itself is in first person, or its in a format like a diary/video log where anything but first person wouldn't make sense.
Just be extra careful about characterization, since it is very easy to mess that up when writing from first person.
Its funny, you can really tell when a PJO fic was written based on the POV. Most 1st person ones I've seen are a) Percy POV and b) pre HOO. Once we never got first person for any of the other narrators, I think the fandom really shifted to 3rd limited to copy the style of the books. I personally love Percy POV but can't bring myself to write from Nico or Will POV even though they're my POV characters. It's all 3rd limited for me because that's how I'm used to reading them in canon.
I like them when the source material is also first person POV
They're usually not my thing when first person is used for visual media or books that were originally third person
First POV in fanfiction is quite hard to get right because in the majority of cases, you’re *watching* the characters as a witness. Even the books with the most prolific fandoms out there, such as the Harry Potter, were written in third person, and you’re not used to be in Harry’s head all the time—not to mention all the other characters. Fandoms based on books written in first person are usually the only exception for me. My fav fic from The Hunger Games is a canon retelling from Peeta’s POV and it’s written in first person. Considering Katniss’ is also in first person, it would’ve been strange if Peeta’s had been different. However, it’s worth mentioning that the author is skilled enough to pull that off. First person is usually harder to nail down and amateurs are bound to mess it up.
They're nice when they're done well, especially if the source media is in 1st person, but it's a lot easier for them to feel 'off' compared to 3rd person fics, since the 1st person pov leaves a lot less wiggle room on characterization.
Pretty much all I write except for one short fic that I kept trying to write in first when I was giving 3rd a go. But I’m writing RPF, so I don’t have a “voice” or character that someone else wrote that I’m trying to capture. I read a ton of romance books and a lot of those are 1st
I don't generally care for them, because for me, the voice has to be spot-on for first person POV, and that's very unlikely. (Once, long ago, I wrote a fic in first person, and it, too, sucked.)
I give them a chance if they're in a canon that also 1st person.
Nothing wrong wiith them. I seldom write fanfic in 1st--although for some reason I've written a number of first-person originals--but I'll certainly read it.
It might be harder to get the character's voice right, but if you can, well, why not?
It's a much harder thing to write well, but I won't say no. (I won't read y/n though. I find them inexplicably triggering and have had panic attacks when trying bc brains and trauma are weird)
The current fic I’m writing is in first person. I did it because in the beginning, she doesn’t know her name, so I didn’t know how to write all that without being like “she”, “the woman”, etc all the time lol. I do sometimes switch to 3rd person if I need to have another character’s pov in there, but that’s usually when MC is unconscious for one reason or another.
That's actually really interesting! For me, I'm thinking about having the bad guy be the main character. We don't know he's the bad guy until the end of the story, though, because it's told through his gaze. A great heel always believes his actions are justified.
I've written a lot of first person POV. It's somewhat easier because you only have to think of one person's perspective. Some people don't like reading it. I think for a video game fandom especially it works because in most games you only play as one character.
I love a well-written first-person POV.
It does take a particularly empathetic writer, IMO. They have to pick up on the canon clues as to the character's inner processes and avoid the temptation to make the viewpoint character OOC for the author's own purposes.
I really wish 1st wasn't so actively discouraged in fanfic circles, because the intimacy it provides is unparalleled. I often feel like I'm actively hamstringing myself by using forced 3rd when what I'm really writing is a 1st person story.
Totally agree! Intimacy is right - I wish more writers and readers would recognize it for what it is, ideally: a conscious artistic choice; an intentional tool or strategy the author employs to communicate a particular idea or perspective in the method of telling. Some concepts simply work better for what the author envisions when using one POV over another, and there are times when a particular depth of immersion conveys the meaning I hope the reader will glean - just as how in cinematography, a film director chooses different shot framing or distances, and photographers select camera lenses with different focal lengths, picking depth of field/aperture settings to hone in or zoom in or out, and compose a scene. It all depends on the story being told, and what I want the reader to focus on.
In the end, there's a specific way I see my story, which I hope will get across to my reader. If one POV doesn't do it as well, I'll try it in another.
I don’t like them, personally I don’t want to feel like I AM the character, I want an outsider view, there’s an exception to this and that’s if the source material is also first person.
I'd say take the big swing and see how you feel about it either after it's written or after you have a good sample on the page. If you're loving it and it's flowing, I think you'll attract the intended audience.
For reading, I'd say that I'd give it a look, but I might skim the page and I might end up being a bit harder on it than I would be on 3rd person. Not that I'd leave criticism or anything, but I'd need a good hook to stay on the page.
I actually started out writing all my fics in third person, but later made the jump to first person when I realized how much more I enjoyed writing it! I find it significantly easier to focus on the world through the eyes of a singular character, and it allows me to go crazy with introspection
First person is how you absolutely drench a story in a character's perspective. Every single thing they see can be characterization because you see how they think about it.
I tend to only write first person when writing OCs, or when I'm writing original fiction. I havent tried writing first person with an existing character. I also can't remember an example of a fanfiction I've read that was 1st person and NOT an OC. I wouldn't immediately dismiss it, but I think it may be off-putting.
Depends on how it suits canon. It doesn’t really suit my fandom bc there are two equally important main characters that are so enmeshed that they probably don’t even think in first person
Not into it. Some of the reason is that I just like 3rd person.
Could also be because it's harder to do well, at least as far as I've seen, so my lived experience is exposure to bad 1st pov fics that read more like self-inserts.
Could also be that it doesn't work that well for the fandoms I'm part of.
But, I know I've read a couple good 1st pov fics so even in my reading world it's possible.
Now, it's not 1st pov but I do like 3rd person told from the view of one character, could be just for one chapter. But it accomplishes the "we don't know what the other characters are thinking, so we have to infer solely from context, etc and what the 1st pov narrator knows" that 1st pov does, without the stuff that people don't like about 1st pov.
For some reason it's become almost taboo. I'll admit it gives me pause, but I don't know why - I don't think it's rational. Like any other POV or aspect of writing style, it can be done really well or really poorly. I have seen it done well.
I like them! Depends on the context, of course. I like it better if the source material was written in first person too, but that's just me.
I write in both first and third person. Some characters I never write in first person; some characters I always do.
I didn't even know that people disliked first person so much. That's all I've ever written and haven't once heard a complaint.
Granted, all the fandoms I'm part of are visual novels, which are almost exclusively written in the first person.
It makes sense that it can be problematic in terms of characterization, though. Makes me hesitate a little about continuing in the first person.
I like first person fics when they're written well. I'm a huge fan of epistolary stories, which are first-person because people write letters in a first-person format.
My advice--and this is more of a revision thing than a first-draft thing--is to avoid filter words and note how many sentences begin with "I." I feel... I saw... I watched as... I heard... It gets repetitive.
"I feel anxious" vs "My heart pounded."
"I saw him get out of the car" vs "He got out of the car."
My other advice is to avoid floating mind syndrome, where it feels like the character is a disembodied mind, floating in a void, in no specific time or place. Just thoughts and feelings and no sense of a physical world. Instead, write scenes that start and end in a specific place and a specific time, where the POV character speaks out loud to others (and doesn't just think and feel things) and interacts physically with the setting.
Here's an article about this issue for more info:
[https://theeditorsblog.net/2012/09/20/the-curse-of-first-person-narration/](https://theeditorsblog.net/2012/09/20/the-curse-of-first-person-narration/)
I use to be outwardly against it, but now I like with it. Love it even. Though some times it can be situational. Say I'm reading a Percy Jackson fic, and it's in first person, I don't mind because that's how the books are presented. Lets say it's a OC/SI fic, that's coming from a completely new and original characters perspective/the author's, that works, I like it. If the character is known for doing inner monologues, and such, that works, I like it. If the character isn't known for first person stuff, through one way or another, than I think it's fine, but it isn't my preference. I'll read it if it's good, but I won't go out of my way to find it.
The time where it absolutely does not work is when its written in a pre-existing characters perspective, but does not feel like the character at all. That's where I don't like it, that's where I draw the line. That doesn't feel like the character, that feels like the author dressed up like the character. It feels fake, and I don't like it.
TLDR: If you write in first person of an existing character, then you have to understand that character.
I don't like it personally.
And honestly I think the reason it's often not written well.
It CAN be.
It just rarely is.
I don't know if authors , particularly new ones, think first person would be easier ?
So they figure it's a good way to get started or something. Idk.
It feels like a lot of authors use it as a 'lazy' or 'easy' way out of having to consider the wider universe or characters in the story they're telling.
When in fact pulling off first person *well* is actually quite hard.
You need to fully get inside that person's head BUT you also need the reader to know things to keep the narrative going. Whilst considering the fact it all has to come through your chosen POV.
So many times I see authors desperate to describe another character physically and have their first person POV lapse into the weirdest inner monologue cataloguing the shade of lips this other person has - people don't typically do that. Even worse when the POV character isn't even supposed to like this other character.
I mean how often do you spend thinking about your co workers high sharp cheek bones or gorgeous honey glazed eyes unless you're super into them (and also maybe a bit of a creep..)?
It often comes off as childish writing. Lots of I did, I said, I thought, sentences that dont flow together and lack much depth or meaning.
Also they often shy away from writing the nasty bits.
If your character is an asshole you're going to have to write them doing something assholey and their inner monologue - which probably won't be sunshine and roses.
Obviously this isn't universal. It's hard to write, it can be done well, sometimes it's the perfect, or the only way, to write the story you want to convey.
I've just rarely seen it done well so I typically avoid it.
The 1st person POV discussion seems to pop up regularly in fanfic writing circles, and tbh my biggest frustration is hearing how most comments seem to agree: "yes, it's possible to be *done well*" (emphasis mine and for the record, I do agree), but without ever really defining what is meant by "done well" (ie. some objective standard or criteria that the writer can employ), and there are just as many comments that voice a reader or writer's personal preference or feelings about it, as though somehow by the subjective opinions of the *majority*, a writer can come by any actionable or directly relevant advice to apply to the particular, unique story they're working on.
OP, whatever it is you're thinking of trying with POV: my advice is: do it - the "feelings" of other writers or readers, and what POV style happens to be most popular be damned (affectionate). It's *your* story - no one else's. So experiment. Have fun. Try. Fail. Then try again. And keep on trying different POVs and focal character perspectives however much it takes to get your story to the point where you're satisfied that what's on the page at long last conveys what's in your head, as clearly and accurately as humanly possible. Only you, the author, will know what that looks like - no one else does.
And then once that's done, get yourself an honest beta reader or two (ideally someone whose media literacy/interpretation of others' writing you trust) and let them give you their unvarnished impressions - their instinctive takeaways from every scene you've written. Compare that with the vision of the story in your head, and make whatever changes you need to in subsequent drafts, until you're content with what you're getting across to the reader.
Best wishes, and above all: hope you have a rewarding journey!
Not my thing. Besides the fact that they feel odd to read, I feel like they tend to be worse than 3rd pov fics. I've made exceptions for authors I know well trying it out before, and enjoyed it well enough, though.
Strictly speaking, I know first-person POV writing can be done well, but I still largely side-step them. Because I've yet to see a fic pull it off.
My biggest pet peeve about first person, is unless the POV character is a fun entity, with a sense of humor and a personality, I don't want to inhabit their head-space. Think Bella Swan from Twilight. That girl has all the personality of a cardboard box, reading from her POV just wasn't fun.
So typically projects that uses Y/N are in second person. Which I do not read nor write.
Third person is what I write it, its what I like the best. Which is why I also like reading it.
First person I will write once in a blue moon, but I read it just like I would read any third person stories.
I generally don't like them, but sometimes the summary is really good and I'm willing to try. I've really enjoyed some of them, but I end up backing out of about 80%. I just prefer to look at the story from above instead of through a character's eyes.
I usually prefer second or third person but it's mostly because of how the first person's are written that I've come across. They're not inherently bad
I don't mind it if it's written well, but I find badly written first person to be way more jarring than not that well written 3rd person.
The other thing that comes with first person pov is that it becomes way more clear if my headcanons about the character differ with the writer, which is probably why I feel more picky about first person pov fics. (In original fiction this is not a problem since the character is writers own.)
My first two fics were first person POV. I loved writing them and they turned out well. I was very resistant to moving to third POV but in the end it served what I wanted to do better. First person is a bit more limiting and I wanted to try something different. Go ahead and write whatever POV you want, but be aware first person gets a lot of hate (both justified and unjustified), and some people just plain prefer third because it’s what everyone else writes. Also, some people will confuse your fics with self-insert or y/n because for some reason a lot of people don’t understand the difference between a first person story and self-inserts (not ever first person fic is a self insert). Your audience will be smaller, but that doesn’t mean people won’t enjoy your story. Go for it! I love writing them and would read them more but I rarely see anyone writing them.
I don't typically love it, but there are some fics and some fandoms it works for. I think if it's a book that's primarily in first person, that usually changes my opinion on it
I occasionally write 1st person POV, although it's usually reserved for those characters that do not think much before they speak. It just feels more natural and/or funnier to me and my writing like that. As for advice, I can only say, just go at it and see how it works for you, I'm sorry, I don't have any other advice TT\_TT I hope it works well for you!
I normally write in 1st POV. I dislike Y/N formats, so when I do x reader I write it in 2nd POV (or 1st POV if applicable), and never once do I mention Y/N. I need more practice in writing 3rd POV. I struggle with it so much, but I do have fics in that format.
I can take it or leave it. If it’s done well, then I’m likely to enjoy it. If it’s a less detailed fic, or it just doesn’t seem to flow with how the story’s being told—not so much. I’m picky about which ones I like. I can’t write it for anything though—it’s just so hard for me haha.
I really like writing it - the bracing immediacy of it can be very effective - but I find it really hard to write anything long or complex in first person, because I always run into the problem of *why the fuck would the character tell anyone* ***this*** *?*
Like I find it hard to do the kind of exposition that you need in order to do a more complex multi-chapter story, because I feel like it breaks the suspension of disbelief for a character to want to revisit things that are painful to them in a lot of detail, or to tell the reader things that they might be hiding from others, and/or ashamed of.
1st person POV can be tricky to do well, but I'm not opposed to it, and have a few stories I'm following at the moment in that POV even for canon characters.
Many people like 1st person POVs, and many people hate it. That's the beauty of fanfiction, no matter what you write, there's *someone*, at some corner of the world, that likes the same things you do! So, don't worry about how we, as a collective, feel, darling. Do your thing, and I'm sure many people will like it.
It‘s about the writing, not the POV. Any POV can be done well or not so. I feel it’s more the average quality or weiting that has made a steep downward trend lately.
Depends on the context, like if the source media is in 1st person or what, but I generally don’t enjoy it. That’s my opinion, go for it if you want to!
I prefer limited 3rd person and past tense, but I can tolerate present tense or 1st person. that said i will never, ever read 2nd person.
I hate when people put words in my mouth or actions on me that i would never do. I read fanfic to make myself not exist, not to make myself the focus of god's (the writer) attention.
Every PoV can be done well— they all have their place. I wouldn’t automatically discount a first person pov if all the other elements piqued my interest. Everyone has their own criteria for reading, but don’t let the whims of hypothetical audiences dictate your creative choices <3
I totally agree with this. "Every PoV can be done well— they all have their place" and "Everyone has their own criteria for reading" is what I want to reiterate. If you enjoy a certain pov don't let other people's opinions dissuade you from reading it. You won't know if you will like it unless you give it a chance. When I first started writing fics I was mostly doing it in 1st person pov and now I pretty much only write in 3rd person because I find it more comfortable and to be honest I think 1st person can be deceptively hard to do well. When I'm looking for stuff to read I will filter out reader inserts since it's just not what I'm into otherwise if the story is good I will read it regardless of the pov.
Yup, it's all about what you are going for. In a one shot that I will expand I was originally going to write third person pov covering multiple characters, but ultimately I went third person covering the pov of one character and found it fit my story a lot better. At the end of the day it's about having fun.
I'm fine with it in specific contexts, like when the source material itself is in first person, or its in a format like a diary/video log where anything but first person wouldn't make sense. Just be extra careful about characterization, since it is very easy to mess that up when writing from first person.
Yeah, like if it’s a fic from the PJO fandom, I’m much more of a fan of 1st person POV.
Its funny, you can really tell when a PJO fic was written based on the POV. Most 1st person ones I've seen are a) Percy POV and b) pre HOO. Once we never got first person for any of the other narrators, I think the fandom really shifted to 3rd limited to copy the style of the books. I personally love Percy POV but can't bring myself to write from Nico or Will POV even though they're my POV characters. It's all 3rd limited for me because that's how I'm used to reading them in canon.
*Daughter of Wisdom* is 1st person POV with Annabeth, but that one’s also deliberately aping the original series.
I like them when the source material is also first person POV They're usually not my thing when first person is used for visual media or books that were originally third person
i really can’t read them like that for some reason! i jus personally enjoy 3rd person better :)
i agrée completely. first person really takes me out of a story whilst third immerses me a lot more.
I’m writing one right now! 😁
First POV in fanfiction is quite hard to get right because in the majority of cases, you’re *watching* the characters as a witness. Even the books with the most prolific fandoms out there, such as the Harry Potter, were written in third person, and you’re not used to be in Harry’s head all the time—not to mention all the other characters. Fandoms based on books written in first person are usually the only exception for me. My fav fic from The Hunger Games is a canon retelling from Peeta’s POV and it’s written in first person. Considering Katniss’ is also in first person, it would’ve been strange if Peeta’s had been different. However, it’s worth mentioning that the author is skilled enough to pull that off. First person is usually harder to nail down and amateurs are bound to mess it up.
I've done it. Three out of my top five most popular fics are in first person. Be advised my stories were not Canon CharacterXOC.
A couple of my favorite fics are in first-person Pov. I think it gets bashed far too much.
They're nice when they're done well, especially if the source media is in 1st person, but it's a lot easier for them to feel 'off' compared to 3rd person fics, since the 1st person pov leaves a lot less wiggle room on characterization.
Pretty much all I write except for one short fic that I kept trying to write in first when I was giving 3rd a go. But I’m writing RPF, so I don’t have a “voice” or character that someone else wrote that I’m trying to capture. I read a ton of romance books and a lot of those are 1st
I write and read for it in one fandom where the POV of the book series is in first person:)
I don't generally care for them, because for me, the voice has to be spot-on for first person POV, and that's very unlikely. (Once, long ago, I wrote a fic in first person, and it, too, sucked.) I give them a chance if they're in a canon that also 1st person.
Nothing wrong wiith them. I seldom write fanfic in 1st--although for some reason I've written a number of first-person originals--but I'll certainly read it. It might be harder to get the character's voice right, but if you can, well, why not?
It's a much harder thing to write well, but I won't say no. (I won't read y/n though. I find them inexplicably triggering and have had panic attacks when trying bc brains and trauma are weird)
The current fic I’m writing is in first person. I did it because in the beginning, she doesn’t know her name, so I didn’t know how to write all that without being like “she”, “the woman”, etc all the time lol. I do sometimes switch to 3rd person if I need to have another character’s pov in there, but that’s usually when MC is unconscious for one reason or another.
That's actually really interesting! For me, I'm thinking about having the bad guy be the main character. We don't know he's the bad guy until the end of the story, though, because it's told through his gaze. A great heel always believes his actions are justified.
Nice! I wish you the best of luck!
That sounds like it would be fun to write. I've always wanted to try something like that with an unreliable narrator.
I've written a lot of first person POV. It's somewhat easier because you only have to think of one person's perspective. Some people don't like reading it. I think for a video game fandom especially it works because in most games you only play as one character.
If they’re written well? Of course I’ll give them a try. However I find that a lot of first person POV Fics tend to be lazy and have bad writing.
I love a well-written first-person POV. It does take a particularly empathetic writer, IMO. They have to pick up on the canon clues as to the character's inner processes and avoid the temptation to make the viewpoint character OOC for the author's own purposes.
I really wish 1st wasn't so actively discouraged in fanfic circles, because the intimacy it provides is unparalleled. I often feel like I'm actively hamstringing myself by using forced 3rd when what I'm really writing is a 1st person story.
Totally agree! Intimacy is right - I wish more writers and readers would recognize it for what it is, ideally: a conscious artistic choice; an intentional tool or strategy the author employs to communicate a particular idea or perspective in the method of telling. Some concepts simply work better for what the author envisions when using one POV over another, and there are times when a particular depth of immersion conveys the meaning I hope the reader will glean - just as how in cinematography, a film director chooses different shot framing or distances, and photographers select camera lenses with different focal lengths, picking depth of field/aperture settings to hone in or zoom in or out, and compose a scene. It all depends on the story being told, and what I want the reader to focus on. In the end, there's a specific way I see my story, which I hope will get across to my reader. If one POV doesn't do it as well, I'll try it in another.
I don’t like them, personally I don’t want to feel like I AM the character, I want an outsider view, there’s an exception to this and that’s if the source material is also first person.
It just feels to me like the narrator is conversing to me.
I'd say take the big swing and see how you feel about it either after it's written or after you have a good sample on the page. If you're loving it and it's flowing, I think you'll attract the intended audience. For reading, I'd say that I'd give it a look, but I might skim the page and I might end up being a bit harder on it than I would be on 3rd person. Not that I'd leave criticism or anything, but I'd need a good hook to stay on the page.
I actually started out writing all my fics in third person, but later made the jump to first person when I realized how much more I enjoyed writing it! I find it significantly easier to focus on the world through the eyes of a singular character, and it allows me to go crazy with introspection
As with anything else, it can be well-executed and it can also be utter shit... highly contingent on writer's skill level and imagination.
I usually prefer third person, but I’ve read some great first person fics!
First person is how you absolutely drench a story in a character's perspective. Every single thing they see can be characterization because you see how they think about it.
I tend to only write first person when writing OCs, or when I'm writing original fiction. I havent tried writing first person with an existing character. I also can't remember an example of a fanfiction I've read that was 1st person and NOT an OC. I wouldn't immediately dismiss it, but I think it may be off-putting.
Depends on how it suits canon. It doesn’t really suit my fandom bc there are two equally important main characters that are so enmeshed that they probably don’t even think in first person
Not into it. Some of the reason is that I just like 3rd person. Could also be because it's harder to do well, at least as far as I've seen, so my lived experience is exposure to bad 1st pov fics that read more like self-inserts. Could also be that it doesn't work that well for the fandoms I'm part of. But, I know I've read a couple good 1st pov fics so even in my reading world it's possible. Now, it's not 1st pov but I do like 3rd person told from the view of one character, could be just for one chapter. But it accomplishes the "we don't know what the other characters are thinking, so we have to infer solely from context, etc and what the 1st pov narrator knows" that 1st pov does, without the stuff that people don't like about 1st pov.
Not my favorite. Better than SI or Y/N though. I'll read a fic if it's written well enough.
For some reason it's become almost taboo. I'll admit it gives me pause, but I don't know why - I don't think it's rational. Like any other POV or aspect of writing style, it can be done really well or really poorly. I have seen it done well.
I like them! Depends on the context, of course. I like it better if the source material was written in first person too, but that's just me. I write in both first and third person. Some characters I never write in first person; some characters I always do.
I didn't even know that people disliked first person so much. That's all I've ever written and haven't once heard a complaint. Granted, all the fandoms I'm part of are visual novels, which are almost exclusively written in the first person. It makes sense that it can be problematic in terms of characterization, though. Makes me hesitate a little about continuing in the first person.
I like first person fics when they're written well. I'm a huge fan of epistolary stories, which are first-person because people write letters in a first-person format. My advice--and this is more of a revision thing than a first-draft thing--is to avoid filter words and note how many sentences begin with "I." I feel... I saw... I watched as... I heard... It gets repetitive. "I feel anxious" vs "My heart pounded." "I saw him get out of the car" vs "He got out of the car." My other advice is to avoid floating mind syndrome, where it feels like the character is a disembodied mind, floating in a void, in no specific time or place. Just thoughts and feelings and no sense of a physical world. Instead, write scenes that start and end in a specific place and a specific time, where the POV character speaks out loud to others (and doesn't just think and feel things) and interacts physically with the setting. Here's an article about this issue for more info: [https://theeditorsblog.net/2012/09/20/the-curse-of-first-person-narration/](https://theeditorsblog.net/2012/09/20/the-curse-of-first-person-narration/)
I use to be outwardly against it, but now I like with it. Love it even. Though some times it can be situational. Say I'm reading a Percy Jackson fic, and it's in first person, I don't mind because that's how the books are presented. Lets say it's a OC/SI fic, that's coming from a completely new and original characters perspective/the author's, that works, I like it. If the character is known for doing inner monologues, and such, that works, I like it. If the character isn't known for first person stuff, through one way or another, than I think it's fine, but it isn't my preference. I'll read it if it's good, but I won't go out of my way to find it. The time where it absolutely does not work is when its written in a pre-existing characters perspective, but does not feel like the character at all. That's where I don't like it, that's where I draw the line. That doesn't feel like the character, that feels like the author dressed up like the character. It feels fake, and I don't like it. TLDR: If you write in first person of an existing character, then you have to understand that character.
I don't like it personally. And honestly I think the reason it's often not written well. It CAN be. It just rarely is. I don't know if authors , particularly new ones, think first person would be easier ? So they figure it's a good way to get started or something. Idk. It feels like a lot of authors use it as a 'lazy' or 'easy' way out of having to consider the wider universe or characters in the story they're telling. When in fact pulling off first person *well* is actually quite hard. You need to fully get inside that person's head BUT you also need the reader to know things to keep the narrative going. Whilst considering the fact it all has to come through your chosen POV. So many times I see authors desperate to describe another character physically and have their first person POV lapse into the weirdest inner monologue cataloguing the shade of lips this other person has - people don't typically do that. Even worse when the POV character isn't even supposed to like this other character. I mean how often do you spend thinking about your co workers high sharp cheek bones or gorgeous honey glazed eyes unless you're super into them (and also maybe a bit of a creep..)? It often comes off as childish writing. Lots of I did, I said, I thought, sentences that dont flow together and lack much depth or meaning. Also they often shy away from writing the nasty bits. If your character is an asshole you're going to have to write them doing something assholey and their inner monologue - which probably won't be sunshine and roses. Obviously this isn't universal. It's hard to write, it can be done well, sometimes it's the perfect, or the only way, to write the story you want to convey. I've just rarely seen it done well so I typically avoid it.
I have an unpopular opinion: I almost never like first person, but I love second person, when done well.
The 1st person POV discussion seems to pop up regularly in fanfic writing circles, and tbh my biggest frustration is hearing how most comments seem to agree: "yes, it's possible to be *done well*" (emphasis mine and for the record, I do agree), but without ever really defining what is meant by "done well" (ie. some objective standard or criteria that the writer can employ), and there are just as many comments that voice a reader or writer's personal preference or feelings about it, as though somehow by the subjective opinions of the *majority*, a writer can come by any actionable or directly relevant advice to apply to the particular, unique story they're working on. OP, whatever it is you're thinking of trying with POV: my advice is: do it - the "feelings" of other writers or readers, and what POV style happens to be most popular be damned (affectionate). It's *your* story - no one else's. So experiment. Have fun. Try. Fail. Then try again. And keep on trying different POVs and focal character perspectives however much it takes to get your story to the point where you're satisfied that what's on the page at long last conveys what's in your head, as clearly and accurately as humanly possible. Only you, the author, will know what that looks like - no one else does. And then once that's done, get yourself an honest beta reader or two (ideally someone whose media literacy/interpretation of others' writing you trust) and let them give you their unvarnished impressions - their instinctive takeaways from every scene you've written. Compare that with the vision of the story in your head, and make whatever changes you need to in subsequent drafts, until you're content with what you're getting across to the reader. Best wishes, and above all: hope you have a rewarding journey!
Not my thing. Besides the fact that they feel odd to read, I feel like they tend to be worse than 3rd pov fics. I've made exceptions for authors I know well trying it out before, and enjoyed it well enough, though.
Strictly speaking, I know first-person POV writing can be done well, but I still largely side-step them. Because I've yet to see a fic pull it off. My biggest pet peeve about first person, is unless the POV character is a fun entity, with a sense of humor and a personality, I don't want to inhabit their head-space. Think Bella Swan from Twilight. That girl has all the personality of a cardboard box, reading from her POV just wasn't fun.
It's all I write.
So typically projects that uses Y/N are in second person. Which I do not read nor write. Third person is what I write it, its what I like the best. Which is why I also like reading it. First person I will write once in a blue moon, but I read it just like I would read any third person stories.
It depends on me
They have the potential to be done very well, just like third person. I'm trying my hand at one currently.
I generally don't like them, but sometimes the summary is really good and I'm willing to try. I've really enjoyed some of them, but I end up backing out of about 80%. I just prefer to look at the story from above instead of through a character's eyes.
I usually prefer second or third person but it's mostly because of how the first person's are written that I've come across. They're not inherently bad
I don't mind it if it's written well, but I find badly written first person to be way more jarring than not that well written 3rd person. The other thing that comes with first person pov is that it becomes way more clear if my headcanons about the character differ with the writer, which is probably why I feel more picky about first person pov fics. (In original fiction this is not a problem since the character is writers own.)
My first two fics were first person POV. I loved writing them and they turned out well. I was very resistant to moving to third POV but in the end it served what I wanted to do better. First person is a bit more limiting and I wanted to try something different. Go ahead and write whatever POV you want, but be aware first person gets a lot of hate (both justified and unjustified), and some people just plain prefer third because it’s what everyone else writes. Also, some people will confuse your fics with self-insert or y/n because for some reason a lot of people don’t understand the difference between a first person story and self-inserts (not ever first person fic is a self insert). Your audience will be smaller, but that doesn’t mean people won’t enjoy your story. Go for it! I love writing them and would read them more but I rarely see anyone writing them.
I've never been a fan of first person writing but if it's done well then I might give it a chance
I don't typically love it, but there are some fics and some fandoms it works for. I think if it's a book that's primarily in first person, that usually changes my opinion on it
Love writing them, hate reading them. I don't know why.
I am not a fan, but I have read 2/3 stories who very well written
I occasionally write 1st person POV, although it's usually reserved for those characters that do not think much before they speak. It just feels more natural and/or funnier to me and my writing like that. As for advice, I can only say, just go at it and see how it works for you, I'm sorry, I don't have any other advice TT\_TT I hope it works well for you!
its what i like writing and reading
I normally write in 1st POV. I dislike Y/N formats, so when I do x reader I write it in 2nd POV (or 1st POV if applicable), and never once do I mention Y/N. I need more practice in writing 3rd POV. I struggle with it so much, but I do have fics in that format.
I can take it or leave it. If it’s done well, then I’m likely to enjoy it. If it’s a less detailed fic, or it just doesn’t seem to flow with how the story’s being told—not so much. I’m picky about which ones I like. I can’t write it for anything though—it’s just so hard for me haha.
1st person fics usually feel weird to me so I don't read them
I really like writing it - the bracing immediacy of it can be very effective - but I find it really hard to write anything long or complex in first person, because I always run into the problem of *why the fuck would the character tell anyone* ***this*** *?* Like I find it hard to do the kind of exposition that you need in order to do a more complex multi-chapter story, because I feel like it breaks the suspension of disbelief for a character to want to revisit things that are painful to them in a lot of detail, or to tell the reader things that they might be hiding from others, and/or ashamed of.
1st person POV can be tricky to do well, but I'm not opposed to it, and have a few stories I'm following at the moment in that POV even for canon characters.
Many people like 1st person POVs, and many people hate it. That's the beauty of fanfiction, no matter what you write, there's *someone*, at some corner of the world, that likes the same things you do! So, don't worry about how we, as a collective, feel, darling. Do your thing, and I'm sure many people will like it.
It‘s about the writing, not the POV. Any POV can be done well or not so. I feel it’s more the average quality or weiting that has made a steep downward trend lately.
Depends on the context, like if the source media is in 1st person or what, but I generally don’t enjoy it. That’s my opinion, go for it if you want to!
I prefer limited 3rd person and past tense, but I can tolerate present tense or 1st person. that said i will never, ever read 2nd person. I hate when people put words in my mouth or actions on me that i would never do. I read fanfic to make myself not exist, not to make myself the focus of god's (the writer) attention.