First Person vs. Third Person - Comments

The first stories I ever wrote were in third person. I'm not really sure why. I find third person harder these days. I'm... also not sure why of this. Haha.

I write all my story plans in third person and then translate it to first person for a chapter. I like my crazy system.
With poetry I tend to write in first person because I find a lot of what I write is confessional, and so it just feels right.

I've written things in second person before just on a whim, and I think they turned out okay. I couldn't write anything too long like that, though.

@ PinkiePromise

PinkiePromise:

And personally I dislike both writing and reading second. To me I find it very... Role Play like. No me gusta.

I agree. If handled correctly, it can be lovely, but it often doesn't seem very...serious to me.

I write third. I don't think it lacks any depth compared to first person, especially in third person limited when you stick to a single characters thought pattern.

I personally dislike first person in most instances as it can venture into long-winded descriptions of 'my blue-green eyes looked into his brown ones' etc. etc. Nobody would actually think 'my blue eyes' or 'my blonde hair'.

Not that I have anything against first person (it can be absolutely beautiful); I'm just saying it can limit you in your descriptions and become difficult to find ways to word things that won't create a Mary Sue out of your character.

I always write in first person, but that's because all my stories generally have to do with an internal battle that the main character is going through. I love third person though because, like occulta said, the descriptions can be beautiful. If your story is along the lines of Main Character versus some type of adventure or nonhuman force (Harry Potter is a great example) go for third. But if it's Main Character versus self/enemy/society go for first.

And personally I dislike both writing and reading second. To me I find it very... Role Play like. No me gusta.

For me it depends on how long the story is going to be and what mood I want to give it. For long stories, I stick with third person. Short stories, either first or second person. Personally, I think first person is all about thought patterns and really reading what's going on inside the narrator's mind; viewing things from his/her perspective. While third person narration is all about description. You can go on a full blown description of things with flowery words and poetic analogies; something that doesn't come out as fluently with first person. Second person, however, is my top favorite. It's narration directed to either the reader or an "unknown" character in your story. I think second person can be the most brutal and heart-wrecking of them all if handled properly. It's a make or break kind of narration.

Bonkers said it really well. It just depends on what you're trying to do with your story. Maybe try to write some in first person, and then re-write it in third and see which suits it best, if you're really stuck.

I love both. It depends on how it's written. If it's centered around a main, and you only really need to know their direct feelings, thoughts, etc then first is best. Third you can explore with everything around the main.

My personal opinion is third person. Mainly because if you're writing in third person, you have a chance to not only know what the main character is thinking but maybe a few side thoughts here and there from the minor characters, and it just makes everything better.

That's just my opinion, at least. First person can be cool, too.