I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my preferred tenses and points of view in the books I read. I’m going to start this post off with a premise that a lot of you may disagree with: third person past tense should be the default for novels. There are a few reasons why I think this, but it mostly boils down to personal preference. The stories I first loved as a girl – the Oz books, fairy tales, The Golden Compass, Harry Potter – were all written this way. To me, stories were things that happened a long time ago in another place, and they were told by someone who knew everything about the story. My more recently-loved reads fall into this category as well: Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Glow, Cinder.
I’ve never found third person distancing. In fact, I usually find first person more distancing than third. When I read a first person novel, it always seems to me as if the protagonist is reading aloud their own story to me, telling me about their own adventures. That can be a great story, of course, but it means it’s not my story. It doesn’t allow me to take ownership of it. In a third person story, the narrator is telling me about things that happened to other people – and any of those other people could be me. I’m pretty sure I’m in the minority here, but the characters I feel closest to are almost always not their own storytellers.
Since I consider third person past tense the default, there needs to be a very good reason to deviate from it, and I get frustrated when no reason for it exists. Most of my frustration has to do with the glut of present tense novels in the YA market within the last few years, not necessarily with first person novels. It’s gotten to the point where I will actively avoid present tense novels even if the plot sounds compelling (and plot is almost always the hook that pulls me in). Interestingly, most present tense novels are written in first person (but not necessarily vice versa).
This isn’t to say that all novels need to be written in third person past tense. There just needs to be a reason for the deviation. Novels that handle present tense well tend to be fast-paced and fueled by action. Present tense puts the reader in the moment and forces the reader to keep the pages flipping. It also doesn’t allow much for lingering. Novels that handle the first person point of view well are those where the narrator’s voice is unique and a vital part of the story. Note that this is not necessarily synonymous with character depth.
I’ve compiled a brief list of some recent-ish reads that I believe handled a first person and/or present tense style well. (I considered making a list of books that should not have been written in first person or present tense, but decided it would be too long.) What are your thoughts? Do you have a preferred tense or point of view? If you do, what are some books you think have deviated from your preference and done it well?
Present Tense
- The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. This is probably the most obvious recent example, and it works because the books are so full of action.
- The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. Again, this works because the book is basically one long chase scene. It also works spectacularly as a combination first person present tense novel since Todd is illiterate, so this format of storytelling makes sense.
- Blood Red Road by Moira Young. Saba is even more illiterate than Todd, so her narrative has to be the stream of consciousness, first person present story that Young wrote. It couldn’t have been done any other way.
- The Fox Inheritance by Mary E. Pearson. The present tense works best here once Locke and Kara escape the doctor and go on the run. In other words, it works best once it becomes an action novel.
First Person
- Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale. This is a novel told in diary format, and it’s always been a great way for me to experience first person.
- All These Things I’ve Done by Gabrielle Zevin. I wasn’t in love with this story, but the first person format really allowed me to get inside Anya’s head. Anya’s got a somewhat wry, self-deprecating voice that works well in first person.
- Clarity by Kim Harrington. Clare’s voice is snarky and sarcastic and she’s wisecracking constantly. It’s a big part of what makes the book so fun to read, and it also makes the first person choice a good one.
- The Flavia de Luce mysteries by Alan Bradley. Flavia is a somewhat snotty, precocious, smart, funny, fearless twelve year old. She is an over the top character and it’s her voice makes these books more than just standard mysteries.
I'm a first person present tense fan…but it has to be done WELL and I prefer it for contemporary vs. any other genre. I think non-contemp works much better in other tenses (though second person doesn't usually work for me, period).
I recently read a historical novel written in first person present and found it so distancing it was maddening.
First person is such a standard for YA that I felt like a freak when my books just organically came out third person past tense. So I'm glad to hear someone who feels like it should be the default voice. I feel the same.
Just read a third person present tense and it distracted me for a good 40 pages. That's how long it took for me to get used to it before the story took more precedent than the POV.
I like feeling like I'm watching the story unfold and third/past does it for me.
I agree with you that 3rd-person past should be the default. That said, first-person past doesn't bother me much (except when the author tries too hard to sound like a teen) — it's first-person present that always takes a few chapters for me to get used to.
Franny Billingsley's CHIME is an example of first-person that was necessary: Briony is fooling herself, and trying to fool us, and you can only see that through her voice.
I agree, I tend to prefer third person past tense as well, but I can get into any point of view as long as it's pulled off well. A first person unreliable point of view is one of my favorites when it's written skillfully.
Basically, for me, as long as I don't notice ("notice" as in being pulled out of the story and actively put off by any flaws) the narration, it usually means I'm into the story.
I agree that Hunger Games & Chaos Walking are great example of first person present narration. I just started Blood Red Road yesterday and am not having any issues with that either.
On the other hand, Flavia de Luce is an example where first person doesn't quite work for me. I see why others like it (the voice, which is what turns me off, but I'm just not a fan and wonder how I would feel about the series if it were narrated in third person.
Third person past tense has been the default for me because that's how my childhood favorites were written, but I don't think it needs to be the standard. Regardless of POV or tense, it always takes me 1/4 to 1/3 of the total page count for me to immerse myself in a book. And by then I'm accustomed to whatever the narration is. The Hunger Games introduced me to first person present tense and I agree that it works best for action novels. I enjoyed Blood Red Road and I'm currently reading The Knife of Never Letting Go. I have yet to tackle second person (You by Charles Benoit).
I'm trying to recall the POV and tenses of the unreliable narrators I've read. I do think unreliable narration is most effective in first person, but I'm wondering if it also works in third person. By the way, I adore Chime by Franny Billingsley (even though Kim didn't) and it's one of those books that I want everybody to read.
As an aside, kudos to the copyeditors for Blood Red Road and The Knife of Never Letting Go. I imagine that the only copyeditors who have it worst are those confronted with endless pages of proper nouns in either realistic contemporary or historical settings. Specifically, I'm thinking of Ready Player One by Ernest Cline.
"I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority here, but the characters I feel closest to are almost always not their own storytellers."
I prefer it, too. First person narrators really own their story. Third person narratives seem to leave a space for me to occupy.
My 'default' while writing is always go to first person present tense, but in reading first person past tense feels like default. I think that each story demands its own tense/POV combination and not every style works with every story. I think on the whole contemporary works with first person better than other POVs and it depends on what the story is ABOUT as far as what tense is used. I do find third-person present tense really really odd though; it can be done wonderfully, but that's incredibly rare IMO. Unlike you though, I find it easier to relate to first-person narrators/protagonists and think that present tense can often be done well with a slower book. But it might just be because that's how I automatically tell my stories.
My favorite to read and write is first person past. Then third person past. I think it's because I like to read YA, and then I like to read romance, and that's what those usually are.
First person present is definitely NOT my favorite, but if the book is good enough, I can get past it. Tense isn't a deal breaker for me, but if given the choice, I'll take first person past tense over any, and I think it's because most contemporary YA is written in first person past.
Great post!
Just saw the Publishers Weekly Review for Wherever You Go by Heather Davis and thought of this blog post: "Davis (The Clearing) takes on the difficult terrain of grief through the eyes of three teens: Holly, who speaks in the first person; Jason, whose experience is narrated in the third person; and Rob, the dead boy, speaking in the second person. It's a risky narrative strategy, executed with significant if not unqualified success."
I HAVE to ask what the reviewer suggests qualified would be. What makes the success "unqualified?"