Non-threaded

Forums » Writing Workshop » Read Thread

Find proofreaders here, useful resources, and share opinions and advice on story crafting.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

How much description do readers typically want for the POV character?  Does the amount of description ever increase or decrease immersion?  Would many readers rather picture their own idea of the POV character based on the reaction of other characters in the story?  Or perhaps type descriptions (cute, pretty, handsome, plain, homely, ugly, etc) rather than specific descriptions (blue eyes, brown hair, crooked teeth, sharp features, a wart on the chin, snub nose, etc)?

Also, how important is it to know 'your' name if it doesn't come up naturally in dialogue?

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

You get really good brownie points if ypu can write a second person story without giving a name to the MC. Though you can get around that with titles like in the fallout franchise.

Normally I don't like specific details about the protaginist, for example if the Protagonist is said to have blond hair then ill totally skip because black hair is superior in every way.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

*eyes you skeptically*

Are you one of those clevery types? ;)

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago
Digit has bad opinions, please ignore him.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

See, Mizal agrees with my stated fact.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Kinda hard to get a straight answer around here, hm?

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago
Tbf, I have a difficult time empathizing with blondes as well. I guess on some level I just don't consider them human.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Brunettes and red heads are okay though? ;)

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Brunettes and other shades of brown yes because that's almost black if made darker. Redhead is a whole other spectrum however.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

*taks quickly on the keyboard*

The witch has red hair.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Make her a bowmaster too and Scottish.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago
My advice is to create the character like you would a character for any other story. 'YOU' doesn't automatically imply a bland generic blob for the reader to pilot around, and readers who demand that are dumb and should be ignored. ('Readers are dumb and should be ignored' indeed is a good general motto to have around here.)

In most stories, background, appearance, name and culture etc. all are an integral part of the character. You CAN'T have a protag with any kind of depth without having those to at least some degree. Stripping away a character's entire identity to gratify a minority handful of readers who want to puppet them around like a Skyrim char is usually an idea you should approach with caution.

Though of course like everything there are exceptions. You might be writing a game that's more about solving puzzles or combat or some other scenario where you don't need a deep character, or where the character and the reader might as well be one in the same as far as the decision making process goes.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Well, to me, it's less about avoiding them and more about the fact that, narritively, it seems forced to have a 2nd person protag self describe.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago
I'll admit that physical description is one of the least important things about a character, unless for some plot related reason there's some detail that actually does matter. Name, background, etc I see as way more important.

I still like to picture them as a bit more of a blank slate, although having the story stop and spit out a full paragraph description is always kind of jarring to me. But them I'm like that with all characters--as a reader I'd prefer just to have a brief sketch and let my mind fill in the rest.

Introduced early on with quick details like 'You're taller than most of your friends' or 'You impatiently push some loose strands of dark hair out of your face' or 'Catching a glimpse of your blue eyes in the mirror, you're taking aback by the anger smoldering in them.' woven into the narrative would give me enough to work with while not slowing down the actual events of the story.

Comparing/contrasting another important character to the protag when introducing them is also a good subtle way to sneak some of that in.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Good points to consider.  So far I'm doing the basic story details and path mapping to see the big picture.  As I do this I'll get a better mental image of what my protag looks like and fill in those details after.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Honestly, most of my protagonists have no name mentioned and I barely even describe them physically most of the time.

Arguably Suzy had the most description and even then I just mention she was an attractive white woman that had blonde hair.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

Thanks for the straight answer. :)  And since I know I liked your stories and they're generally very well recieved, your comment has a lot of weight.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

While usually with writing the POV character needs a bit of description, in CHYOA's there should probably be a bit more vagueness so the character can step in. If you're writing a human, you might as well leave it fairly blank, only adding descriptors if they have something to do with the plot, such as making them attractive if they're going to be seducing someone over the course of the story, or making them a bronze-skinned Greek because for some reason you've made everything Greek for the story, or an adopted Asian because for some reason you thought Asian cyborgs were cooler than white cyborgs. 

I'm getting distracted and trying to justify my own personal brand of nonsense. Yeah, unless the description is going to do something, I wouldn't see much need for it.

POV Descriptions and Immersion

6 years ago

"A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men" - Roald Dahl. (perhaps based on an older saying, but this is where I got it from.)

Thank you for the answer though.  That was kind of what I figured.  Descriptions that are plot related are good; those that are just there to take up word space seem a little less pressing.  Some of that is just stylistic, but still, there are trends in what people want/don't want.