Limited Third Person Question

Funaek · Mar 30, 2015

I'm writing in third person narrative and have a few sections that only contain my main character. Should I be limiting references to my mc's name and instead use "she" as much as possible? Or use her name at the start of a new paragraph and then "she" for the remainder of the paragraph? Or intersperse the mc's name and "she" in a balanced way throughout the sections? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

KidCassandra · Mar 30, 2015

By full name do you mean whole name/first and last, like "Joan Smith?" Or just the first name/nickname? Because it would definitely become tiresome to see a long/legal name written out so often, unless it was an aspect of character or plot.

As for "name" vs "she," it depends on your style and aesthetic. If she's the only character in the scene, and she's not thinking of someone of the same gender, it should not be confusing to the reader to only use the pronoun.

I tend to mix it up a bit, depending on what flows better in the paragraph. I think I use my character's name more often than some authors I've seen. I'd say, whatever makes the writing unobtrusive, so that story and character can shine through.

Funaek · Mar 30, 2015

KidCassandra said:
By full name do you mean whole name/first and last, like "Joan Smith?" Or just the first name/nickname? Because it would definitely become tiresome to see a long/legal name written out so often, unless it was an aspect of character or plot.

As for "name" vs "she," it depends on your style and aesthetic. If she's the only character in the scene, and she's not thinking of someone of the same gender, it should not be confusing to the reader to only use the pronoun.

I tend to mix it up a bit, depending on what flows better in the paragraph. I think I use my character's name more often than some authors I've seen. I'd say, whatever makes the writing unobtrusive, so that story and character can shine through.

Oops I should clarify that I meant just the character's first name! I'll edit that in my original post.

Thanks for the advice! I agree - I think the goal should be to make the writing unobtrusive. Maybe I'll go with what feels right for now and do a read through out loud and see if it sounds okay.

pandaponies · Mar 30, 2015

KidCassandra said:
If she's the only character in the scene, and she's not thinking of someone of the same gender, it should not be confusing to the reader to only use the pronoun.

Yup, this is what I do.

BethS · Mar 30, 2015

Funaek said:
I'm writing in third person narrative and have a few sections that only contain my main character. Should I be limiting references to my mc's name and instead use "she" as much as possible? Or use her name at the start of a new paragraph and then "she" for the remainder of the paragraph? Or intersperse the mc's name and "she" in a balanced way throughout the sections? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

The pronoun is less intrusive and more intimate. My advice is to use the name as little as possible. It's there to identify the character, but you don't need it when the character is already known to the reader.

heza · Mar 30, 2015

Same here. I start off calling her by name but then just say "she" until someone else's name comes up. After I'm done with references to that person, I'll restate my character's name to provide the antecedent and then use "she," thereafter, again.

Maryn · Mar 30, 2015

It's also worth a mention that filtering makes you use either a pronoun or name when you can get by with neither one. So after you finish a draft, you can look at it specifically for that flaw and eliminate some of the names/pronouns.

Jane scurried into the alley. She saw a greasy taco wrapper dance in the wind, and she heard a metal door clang shut.

Jane scurried into the alley. A greasy taco wrapper danced in the wind, and a metal door clanged shut.

Maryn, who used to filter something fierce

Axl Prose · Mar 30, 2015

Just me personally, I try to use the name only when needed.

Maryn said:
It's also worth a mention that filtering makes you use either a pronoun or name when you can get by with neither one. So after you finish a draft, you can look at it specifically for that flaw and eliminate some of the names/pronouns.

Jane scurried into the alley. She saw a greasy taco wrapper dance in the wind, and she heard a metal door clang shut.

Jane scurried into the alley. A greasy taco wrapper danced in the wind, and a metal door clanged shut.

Maryn, who used to filter something fierce

I can honestly say, revising/editing opened my eyes to this. Just little things like that example. I didn't realize how much I was filtering while writing. When you cut out all your filters, it really does make a huge difference.

Funaek · Mar 31, 2015

Maryn said:
It's also worth a mention that filtering makes you use either a pronoun or name when you can get by with neither one. So after you finish a draft, you can look at it specifically for that flaw and eliminate some of the names/pronouns.

Jane scurried into the alley. She saw a greasy taco wrapper dance in the wind, and she heard a metal door clang shut.

Jane scurried into the alley. A greasy taco wrapper danced in the wind, and a metal door clanged shut.

Maryn, who used to filter something fierce

Haha I love your sign off! Yes, I have to constantly check myself from filtering too much and making sure I'm showing and not telling. Hopefully the more I write the more it will come naturally to me.

Jamesaritchie · Mar 31, 2015

Maryn said:
It's also worth a mention that filtering makes you use either a pronoun or name when you can get by with neither one. So after you finish a draft, you can look at it specifically for that flaw and eliminate some of the names/pronouns.

Jane scurried into the alley. She saw a greasy taco wrapper dance in the wind, and she heard a metal door clang shut.

Jane scurried into the alley. A greasy taco wrapper danced in the wind, and a metal door clanged shut.

Maryn, who used to filter something fierce

And we agree on something!

Limited Third Person Question

Funaek

KidCassandra

learning how to BIC

Funaek

pandaponies

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

BethS

heza

Maryn

Baaa!

Axl Prose

Funaek

Jamesaritchie