Darren Groth - Author Interview: Narrative Style

Which narrative point of view (first person, second person or third person) do you use most in your fiction, or do you often use different points of view for different stories, and why?

I use different POVs. The story tends to let me know who should have a narrative voice. Sometimes the characters are pretty insistent, too.

Do you use present tense or past tense most in your fiction, or do you often switch tense for different stories, and why?

Tense is also dependent upon the story and the sort of emotional experiences you want to deliver to the reader.

Pick one of your published stories. What combination of point of view and tense did you use for this story, and why?

My 2010 novel 'Kindling' was told in the present tense, using the POV of father and son. Due to the nature of the tale - a runaway child with parent in pursuit and the spectre of a bushfire - present tense was the best choice. It lent the narrative immediacy and emphasised every moment for the reader. The dual POV permitted the reader to meaningfully connect with the two protagonists and assisted in creating narrative tension.

To what extent is the vocabulary and manner of speech of the narration in this story different from your own everyday expression, and what does this contribute to the story?

Vocab and speech for any story needs to be believable; if it isn't, you may lose the reader and fall short of the emotional pitch desired. In 'Kindling' the boy, Kieran, is autistic. It was essential his voice be authentic to my own experiences as an autism parent and to the vast readership with some similar measure of personal insight. At a narrative level, Kieran's walk and talk was in sharp contrast to his father, thus generating sympathy for the characters and contributing to the 'razor edge' demanded by the plot.

Did you tell this story with one narrator or multiple narrators, and why?

Father and son alternately narrated 'Kindling'. Both had tremendous responsibility in delivering the story's emotional quotient to the reader.

Did you make the narrator of this story a character involved in the main action of the story, or did you make the narrator one which is not a charcater in your fictional storyworld, and why?

The narrators were absolutely front and centre to, and of, the story. Their journeys needed to be told by them and as it happened.

What is one of your favourite fictional stories, in which you think is narration is written well, and how would you describe what makes the narration work so well for you as a reader?

'The Book Thief' by Markus Zusak is a great example of creative and accomplished narration. Entrusting the voice of the story to Death was a monumental challenge, but its success engineered a detachment and melancholy that was masterful. It also spawned a most unlikely emotional response in the reader: sympathy for the Reaper.

Do you usually provide direct access to the thoughts of characters in your stories? If so, do you usually provide access to the thoughts of one character or multiple characters in a single story or point of view, and why?

Again, it is dependent on the story. I am yet to write a novel in which only one character's inner terrain is laid out for the reader. But I wouldn't ever rule it out.

To what extent does the narrative style of novels you read have an impact on why you read them, and why?

Good writing is good writing, good story is good story. Narrative style doesn't influence why I start reading a novel. It has a huge impact on whether I finish reading it, though.

Author website: www.darrengroth.com