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Motoreducteur t1_ix17y4v wrote

I think it depends mainly on the action for each perspective. If they all follow the same action, and the perspectives are linked (like from the perspective of one character and then another who is with them), it should be fine to have like 5-6.

I also find that having just a chapter from another perspective (even that of a random character) can really help to, well, put in perspective, the action. When you follow the hero, a big monster is like « meh, how is he going to take him down? », but if you follow the altercation from a random peasant’s perspective, the danger feels all the more real and you are reminded of the stakes of the fight.

All in all, I think that there should be 3 « main perspectives » at most. Even that is a lot (Eragon: Eldest is already made boring by having 2 different main perspectives). As for the « random citizen » perspective, you may have a lot of you want, but they must be sparse and put an emphasis on something you want to show the reader. Recurring perspectives are really not the best way to tell a story, especially if it’s on different actions.

And yes, I find A song of ice and fire to be a poor book series for its deplorable perspective management.

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Silent-Low-1143 t1_ix2jlfu wrote

>And yes, I find A song of ice and fire to be a poor book series for its deplorable perspective management.

Among all it's imperfections, I feel the character perspectives are something he does reasonably well (as far as I have read).

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throwawaffleaway OP t1_ix1b0fh wrote

I have only read the first GOT book, but I watched the show and at least the perspective changing there MOSTLY contributed to the audience understanding how the fight for the throne unfolded throughout the whole country. Being such a long series and having complex political families, even if it’s tiresome, most of it makes sense. However, this is why I don’t read a lot of fantasy, because it IS a lot to keep track of.

I have encountered the bystander perspective before and done right, it can reveal so much. It’s sort of like breaking the fourth wall, reminding the audience that there’s so many other lives being lived besides the ones you’re reading about.

I like the rule of odds quite a bit. 1,3, or 5 seems like a decent amount of POV. The only book I can think of off the top of my head that had 2 perspectives (unless you count the very beginning before MC Lotto was born) was Fates and Furies, which I hated tbh.

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Motoreducteur t1_ix1lhf8 wrote

I agree, it fits really well in a show, but the books are hard to read, and it’s not because of their size… when I read GOT, I roughly only looked at the Daenerys part, and then looked at the rest, and even then, it was quite boring and difficult to follow…

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