Wednesday, September 14, 2011

POV

So John Dunn will be presented with a major problem pretty soon in my WIP. The Zulu War is about to begin, and he has lived as a Zulu for many years at that point. He has Zulu wives, Zulu children, and Zulu subjects who live under his rule.

And although he is a chieftain of his own subkingdom in Zululand, he is still under the Zulu King Cetshwayo as all Zulu chieftains are, but he is a close friend of the king. And Cetshwayo tells Dunn at the start of the war to stay out of it, that he should remain neutral rather than participate in the killing of his own people. (Ethnically speaking, that is, since Dunn never lived in the UK. He was born and raised in Africa.)

And remaining neutral is just what Dunn wants to do. But the British aren't so cool about it. Especially after they lost the first major battle at Isandlwana. Smarting from that defeat, the British commander, Lord Chelmsford tells Dunn that he canNOT remain neutral, that he better help them (the British) or he will be tried as a traitor!

Uh oh. So which POV do I take? The Zulu POV or the British. It's kind of like the dilemma that faced Dunn. I will try to convey both POVs. And like in all wars, each side believes they are in the right. The Zulus are defending their land from invaders. But the British believe they are launching a preemptive strike against a hostile enemy. Ultimately, it will be Dunn's POV, because as the MC, the story follows his perspective. So here we go.

1 comment:

  1. They say to keep your character in conflict - you've got plenty of that!

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