Omni POV is not dead. It is alive and well and can be found in works by contemporary authors. Ed McBain AKA Evan Hunter uses omni POV in his 87th Precinct novels. Australian, Jon Cleary, employs omni POV in his Inspector Scobie Malone novels. Tom Clancy, John Grisham and other bestselling authors have employed omni POV. However, most contemporary authors utilize a new, tighter version of omni POV than the POV employed by Dickens and Austen.
In the Victorian style, the omniscient narrator was a presence in the story, a distinct voice speaking to the reader - often quite directly. It was the voice of an all- knowing storyteller spinning a tale. It is a style little used by contemporary authors.
The contemporary version of omni POV is more limited, more focused. It is really an expanded version of limited 3rd person in that for much of a scene or chapter, the author will restrict the POV to a single character. Head hopping is not a standard aspect of this omni POV, but even among the Victorians, head hopping was not much in favor.
To draw a reader into the fictional reality, it helps to have a character the reader cares about and identifies with. This is one of the strongest arguments for a limited POV. It is important to establish the "who" of a scene quickly, and presenting the scene through the POV of the scene's central character is a most effective way of accomplishing this. Indeed, most readers will assume that the POV character in the opening scene of a story is likely to be the protagonist or antagonist of the story, and the reader will look for clues that indicate what sort of person this character may be. In other words, the reader looks for reasons to identify with the POV character. Therefore, establishing a clear POV character is simply good craft. Randomly switching POV or head hopping is not good craft because it fails to meet the reader's expectations and preferences.
Once an author has established a clear POV the reader can identify with, switching POV should be done only if it enhances the drama of the scene. If the same information can be presented without shifting POV, it is usually best not to switch POV. And of course, any POV switch needs to be handled so as not to jar the reader out of the fictional reality.
© 2000 Dave Swinford.
