Comments on: New Year’s Resolutions: Eliminate Dead Wood http://www.alattimore.com/archives/182 Ranting about the state of the Future for over 3 years. Fri, 21 Nov 2008 06:39:02 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1.3 By: Alan Lattimore http://www.alattimore.com/archives/182#comment-26 Alan Lattimore Tue, 20 Jan 2004 08:51:29 +0000 http://www.alattimore.com/archives/182#comment-26 Most of the <a href="http://s1ngularity.blogspot.com/#107431683680272188">comments </a> have shown up over on <a href='http://s1ngularity.blogspot.com/'>s1ngularity</a>. Click on "Comment on this post." You will need javascript enabled. Most of the comments have shown up over on s1ngularity. Click on “Comment on this post.” You will need javascript enabled.

]]> By: Alan Lattimore http://www.alattimore.com/archives/182#comment-27 Alan Lattimore Thu, 22 Jan 2004 19:20:31 +0000 http://www.alattimore.com/archives/182#comment-27 There are times, even according to my own coffee induced hyperdrive view, when it makes sense to have the POV character largely uninvolved in the action. An example is when the main character is hard for the reader to inhabit. This often happens in horror, where the main character might be to repellant for the reader to share for an extended period of time. <p>It can also happen in alien fiction, where the main character is too alien and can really only be understood through the eyes of the human on the sidelines. Superhumans, out of the old comics, have the same issue. That's why there's always a near-mortal sidekick. <p><a href='http://www.sfsite.com/revwho.htm#Trent%20Walters'>Trent </a>, over at <a href='http://s1ngularity.blogspot.com/'>s1ngularity</a> notes <i>The Great Gatsby</i> features a main character who isn't part of the action but is, instead, transformed by it. <p>So I don't think this technique is bad in the abstract but its hard to use properly. For the last couple of years, too many genre stories that I read employ this device (as far as I can tell) to increase the distance between the reader and the action, to insulate the reader, and to make sure the reader has as little emotional connection to the story as possible. <p>That's just wrong. <p>Best Regards, <br>Alan There are times, even according to my own coffee induced hyperdrive view, when it makes sense to have the POV character largely uninvolved in the action. An example is when the main character is hard for the reader to inhabit. This often happens in horror, where the main character might be to repellant for the reader to share for an extended period of time.

It can also happen in alien fiction, where the main character is too alien and can really only be understood through the eyes of the human on the sidelines. Superhumans, out of the old comics, have the same issue. That’s why there’s always a near-mortal sidekick.

Trent , over at s1ngularity notes The Great Gatsby features a main character who isn’t part of the action but is, instead, transformed by it.

So I don’t think this technique is bad in the abstract but its hard to use properly. For the last couple of years, too many genre stories that I read employ this device (as far as I can tell) to increase the distance between the reader and the action, to insulate the reader, and to make sure the reader has as little emotional connection to the story as possible.

That’s just wrong.

Best Regards,

Alan

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