The Importance of Narrative Control

When we encounter or tell a story, we must realize that the information we’re recieving is told from a certain point of view. This point of view is critical if we’re to rely on that information to make our own decisions and actions.

As writers of fiction, we put this into practice with our writings by choosing how to tell the story we’re writing. Sometimes we need multiple points of view.

Staying on task as a discovery writer with point of view is important because as writers of fiction our characters are revealing the plot as we type along. Its literally, “I’m making this up as I go."

(From Deviant Art, an online independent artists’ community… by studiomia. Check out her art here. No copyright infringement intended. Please support independent creative people!)

But we can't fit everything into the first draft - that's why there's sequals.

But what if one person, or only one person controlled the narrative?

Do we realize how different history would be? Do we realize how different current events would be?

For sport - picture a Bond movie told from the point of view of the villian.

It feels odd because we’re so used to seeing things from our perspective. It feels intriguing to look at that because investigating and curiousity is what humanity was made to do. We're meant to explore things... whether that's a physical expedition, or a fictional story.

When we are forbidden from exploring these things, it can be considered censorship. Censorship of some things in society is good, because I don't know how many parents actually want to explain certain adult topics to their children. But censorship of all things, all the time is not.

Censorship is the dark side of narrative control.

When narratives of any type don't leave room for information or alternative views on topics are greeted with hostility and outright hatred or name calling… this is a type of propaganda.

How do we spot this?

Next week!

Until then...

Your stories are amazing!

Chronic Writer