If there was ever a secret to writing, then mastering DEEP POV would be it. It certainly takes time to learn the techniques involved around getting this POV right, but I hear time and time again from editors and publishers that this is the most powerful tool in a writer’s arsenal. Study and delve into it, and ensure you have this secret weapon at the top of your toolbox. As a writer, going DEEP, means you have to go deep inside your character’s head when you tell your story. Every action, reaction, emotion and thought has to be shown as if the character was living and breathing the story, and not the author telling it.

Here are some tips and techniques to aid you in mastering your POV and going Deep.

• In order to keep things in perspective as you write, allow your POV character to guide you through their world.
• Use all the character’s senses to feel, hear, smell, see and taste things.
• Since the character is the guide, he or she can share all their emotions, reactions, thoughts, opinions, and decisions.
• This encourages showing instead of telling. Because when we tell, we’re explaining from an author’s perspective.
• We don’t want an author’s perspective when we go Deep. We want a character’s perspective.
• We need to be inside the character’s head and looking out of their eyes.
• Which means don’t allow your character to step in front of you. (This is hugely important. And I’m going to write this line again so it really sticks.)
• Don’t allow your character to step in front of you.
• No, you are not standing behind the character explaining their thoughts and actions.
• You are looking out of their eyes.

Did you all get that? Because that is the key to going Deep. You are looking out of their eyes. You are experiencing what is happening to them. Who just got goose bumps when that registered? Okay, now onward from that point.

• Now that you’re looking out of your character’s eyes, the things you notice or remark upon will drastically change. You’ll only mention things that matter to the character.
• This means your descriptions will tighten.
• For example, say your character is running for her life out of the house from a killer. She won’t bother to explain what the curtains look like, or how plush the carpet is. No. She is focused on the door, and not the exotic wood panelling, but the knob and yanking it open. Only bring to life on the page what the character is focused on. Tighten descriptions so the POV becomes more targeted.
• What happens next? You’re looking through the character’s eyes. You’re not going to describe the street and the flowers blossoming on the trees. No. She doesn’t have time to analyse those sorts of things. She’s looking for an escape path, and that’s it. For example: The black SUV parked outside the neighbor’s house. The door’s opening. It’s Jack. He’ll help her.
• Do you see where I’m heading? Tightening your descriptions and only showing what you are looking at out of your character’s eyes, will allow you to suddenly bring in her thoughts and reactions with ease. All your character’s senses come to roaring life and will enhance each and every scene. That’s what every author wants, to drag their reader right into their story.
• Which means your world of storytelling has changed, and all because you’re mastering your POV.

Fantastic, isn’t it?

So, the next time you’re having trouble with a scene and believe it’s become too flat, try this.

• Go back and see if you’re looking out of your character’s eyes.
• Check and see if you are honed into all your character’s senses.
• If you are living and breathing your character.
• That you are inside their head.

To aid you with this, if you’re interested in reading a book written entirely in Deep 3rd POV, then I’d highly recommend you grab a copy of my contemporary romantic suspense, WITNESS PURSUIT. When I was trying to master my POV, I was after books written in Deep, where I was dragged right into the story. Seeing Deep in action infuses it into our minds. There is no telling whatsoever in Witness Pursuit (eg, she watched, she heard, she noticed, she thought, etc, etc. And all the character’s senses are enhanced to the deepest degree.) The POV is tight and any character intrusion (eg, allowing my characters to step in front of me) doesn’t occur in the writing.

If you’re after a book written in Deep 1st, then I’d recommend WARRIOR for you. The same principles apply to Deep, no matter if you’re writing in 1st or 3rd. In fact apart from my debut novel, Protector, (where I was still mastering the technique,) all my books thereafter are written in Deep, so feel free to grab copies as new releases arrive. Get infused into the world of Deep storytelling. You’ll love it. The links for all my books are below should you have need of them.

Also, one last thing. I had some fun yesterday playing around with my website. I’ve created a new home page, all snazzy, or at least I hope so. If anyone has time to check it out, I’d love it. There’s even a Rafflecopter giveaway at the end, so feel free to click on that link and enter my super-duper giveaway. My website link is http://www.joannewadsworth.com. You’ll now find my blog under it’s own menu tab, although that won’t interfere with anyone receiving these posts via email. That’s all the same.

Happy Deep writing, and thanks for joining me this week.

~ Joanne Wadsworth’s Books ~

Buy WITNESS PURSUIT (Bodyguards #1) at: Amazon Kindle / Amazon Paperback / B&N Nook & Paperback / iTunes / Kobo

Buy WARRIOR (Magio-Earth #2) at: Amazon Kindle / B&N Nook / iTunes / Kobo

Buy PROTECTOR (Magio-Earth #1) at: Amazon Kindle / B&N Nook / iTunes / Kobo

Buy FIRST FROST, A Lyrical Press Anthology (including Highlander’s Captive by Joanne Wadsworth): Amazon Kindle / All Romance Ebooks

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