I think there’s something you get from multiple points of view that you don’t really get from any other format. I tend to write about extreme, often traumatic situations, and by using multiple points of view, I am able to take a 360 degree view of these things.
It always fascinates me the way in which many people can observe the same situation and yet see it in a totally different way. The way that a character will understand and interpret an event is completely dependent on their background, their personality, and their experiences, so by using a number of different narrators, I am able to portray an event from a number of different angles.
I think the downside of this style is that readers can occasionally get confused. Who am I following now? Who is this character?
But, it’s a style that I love, both as a reader and as a writer, and I think that the breadth of scope that it gives you is worth pushing your readers just that little bit harder.
Emma Kavanagh is a former police and military psychologist, and author of After We Fall: A Novel (Sourcebooks). Twitter: @EmmaLK