Corpus Christi

First Person:
I got up just after dawn to take a walk around campus. This is not something I usually do and, more often then not, when dawn breaks I’m usually just getting to bed. I picked up my copy of Middle English Lyric and tucked it into my bag as Professor Rutledge’s lectures echoed in the back of my mind. Lyric seems to mean more when I’m in a natural setting. The nearly empty campus was kinda of eerie to me, and as I wandered around with only the early morning sound of birds and the clink of keys in my bag, I felt a little more conscious of where I was going. I didn’t really know where I was going until I stopped to sit at a bench near what I thought was Thompson. I pulled out my book and started reading the Corpus Christi carol. As I neared the end of the lyric, a crow alighted from one of the trees. It was only a foot away and it stayed there for longer than it should have. I shut my book and blinked at it and wondered, “When’s the last time I went to Church?”

Second Person:
You got up just after dawn to take a walk around campus. This is not something you usually do and, more often then not, when dawn breaks you’re usually just getting to bed. You picked up your copy of Middle English Lyric and tucked it into your bag as Professor Rutledge’s lectures echoed in the back of your mind. Lyric seems to mean more when you’re in a natural setting. The nearly empty campus was kinda of eerie to you, and as you wandered around with only the early morning sound of birds and the clink of keys in your bag, you felt a little more conscious of where you were going. You didn’t really know where you were going until you stopped to sit at a bench near what you thought was Thompson. You pulled out your book and started reading the Corpus Christi carol. As you neared the end of the lyric, a crow alighted from one of the trees. It was only a foot away and it stayed there for longer than it should have. You shut your book and blinked at it and wondered, “When’s the last time I went to Church?”

Third Person:
He got up just after dawn to take a walk around campus. This is not something he usually did and, more often then not, when dawn breaks he was usually just getting to bed. He picked up his copy of Middle English Lyric and tucked it into his bag as Professor Rutledge’s lectures echoed in the back of his mind. Lyric seems to mean more when he’s in a natural setting. The nearly empty campus was kinda of eerie to him, and as he wandered around with only the early morning sound of birds and the clink of keys in his bag, he felt a little more conscious of where he were going. He didn’t really know where he were going until he stopped to sit at a bench near what he thought was Thompson. He pulled out his book and started reading the Corpus Christi carol. As he neared the end of the lyric, a crow alighted from one of the trees. It was only a foot away and it stayed there for longer than it should have. He shut his book and blinked at it and wondered, “When’s the last time I went to Church?”

The tone of the three paragraphs feels very similar. First person is more personal and third person seems more distant. I think the third person and the gendered “he” creates another layer of depth that “I” and “You” seem to lack. As a reader, I am more detached from the third person point of view than any of the others; I am not a participant or an active voice in the narrative but rather an observer, and this is far more interesting to me.

While first person denotes a personal account, second person acts as instruction. Both second and third person relay an observation of a completely separate entity, so there appear to be two: the narrator and the character. First person lacks this divide.

-Samantha Markey

Authenticity and Authority

Believability, to me, is something that is established under two premises: authenticity and authority.

When we think of the word authentic in the literal sense, we can assume it to mean something that is reliably based on facts or as something that is genuine, or original, but the definition I am going to utilize, and the definition I think is more relevant to creative writing, is one of existentialist origin: authenticity describes or relates to an emotionally appropriate, significant, purposive, and responsible mode of human life.

When creating a character or plot, I feel we have a responsibility to hit these basic ideas. If a character is not emotionally appropriate in a given situation, believability may be lost. This is not to say that a character has to be flat or simplistic in any way, or that a character cannot have a dramatic change of heart that shifts the trajectory of a story, but I (as a reader) find it extremely distracting when there is a lack of continuity or appropriateness in emotional responses. If a character lacks a purpose within the context of a narrative, believability may also be lost. Characters should be significant to your story, even if the significance is minute. They need to have some narrative purpose or function to be believable.

Authority is also key to believability. The definition I am using here is the ability to influence others because of one’s commanding manner or one’s recognized knowledge about something. If an author maintains authority, they can make you believe that the sky is pink and that sharks are vegetarians. A good author is one that can suspend that disbelief through a perceived command or knowledge of his or her material. A good example of this authority is Tolkien and his legendarium. He created a believable trilogy with the principle villain being a giant, flaming eyeball. Think about that for a second. A giant, flaming eyeball. It’s believable because he has such a command and such an authority over his material that our disbelief is suspended and we just accept it and go with it.

I think that if a writer can create a balance of authenticity and creative authority they will invariably write something that is both believable and entertaining.

-Samantha Markey