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Referring to a character in 3rd person when they have amnesia
How best to handle revealing a main character's name midway through a long story in close-third person?Is it a bad idea to vary the voice of the narrator in third person (limited omniscient)?What is the voice called when the narrator is a secondary character?How should I have my male character express strong feelings?Switching perspectives for a single chapter in a first person POV novel, to do or not to do?What is the difference between limited third-person narrative and free indirect discourse?How to refer to characters in a non-repetitive way in the third person?How to write female characters as a male writer?What to call a main character who changes names?How do I prevent my protagonist from ending the world?
A section of a story I am writing is being told in third person from the perspective of a character who does not know anything about herself due to amnesia. The reader is also unaware of anything regarding this character, but she assumes an identity after a period of time based on the things she learns. How can I refer to this character in 3rd person until her identity is assumed?
fiction naming perspective third-person
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A section of a story I am writing is being told in third person from the perspective of a character who does not know anything about herself due to amnesia. The reader is also unaware of anything regarding this character, but she assumes an identity after a period of time based on the things she learns. How can I refer to this character in 3rd person until her identity is assumed?
fiction naming perspective third-person
add a comment |
A section of a story I am writing is being told in third person from the perspective of a character who does not know anything about herself due to amnesia. The reader is also unaware of anything regarding this character, but she assumes an identity after a period of time based on the things she learns. How can I refer to this character in 3rd person until her identity is assumed?
fiction naming perspective third-person
A section of a story I am writing is being told in third person from the perspective of a character who does not know anything about herself due to amnesia. The reader is also unaware of anything regarding this character, but she assumes an identity after a period of time based on the things she learns. How can I refer to this character in 3rd person until her identity is assumed?
fiction naming perspective third-person
fiction naming perspective third-person
edited 3 hours ago
Cyn
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21.2k14598
asked 4 hours ago
driimadriima
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1156
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Use the name others use for her.
It's pretty standard that, if a patient can't be identified, a placeholder name gets assigned. Jane Doe (in the US anyway) is a very common one (John Doe for males).
If this continues longer than a few days, the hospital staff (or the people wherever she finds herself) will come up with a nickname for her. Or your main character may make up a name for herself. Sometimes this is just a first name. Other times it may be a first and last name, for legal purposes.
If you don't want to show the reader any name, you can refer to her as "the woman" or something similar. Some stories do that. It's not my style, but it works.
Or you might use a nickname that isn't a real name. For example: "5B" (the room she's in) or "Yosemite" (where she was found) or "Redshoe" (what she was wearing when found).
Humans always assign names to people, even if they're not accurate, complementary, or real names. Give her something that has little to nothing to do with her real identity and go with it.
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1 Answer
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1 Answer
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oldest
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Use the name others use for her.
It's pretty standard that, if a patient can't be identified, a placeholder name gets assigned. Jane Doe (in the US anyway) is a very common one (John Doe for males).
If this continues longer than a few days, the hospital staff (or the people wherever she finds herself) will come up with a nickname for her. Or your main character may make up a name for herself. Sometimes this is just a first name. Other times it may be a first and last name, for legal purposes.
If you don't want to show the reader any name, you can refer to her as "the woman" or something similar. Some stories do that. It's not my style, but it works.
Or you might use a nickname that isn't a real name. For example: "5B" (the room she's in) or "Yosemite" (where she was found) or "Redshoe" (what she was wearing when found).
Humans always assign names to people, even if they're not accurate, complementary, or real names. Give her something that has little to nothing to do with her real identity and go with it.
add a comment |
Use the name others use for her.
It's pretty standard that, if a patient can't be identified, a placeholder name gets assigned. Jane Doe (in the US anyway) is a very common one (John Doe for males).
If this continues longer than a few days, the hospital staff (or the people wherever she finds herself) will come up with a nickname for her. Or your main character may make up a name for herself. Sometimes this is just a first name. Other times it may be a first and last name, for legal purposes.
If you don't want to show the reader any name, you can refer to her as "the woman" or something similar. Some stories do that. It's not my style, but it works.
Or you might use a nickname that isn't a real name. For example: "5B" (the room she's in) or "Yosemite" (where she was found) or "Redshoe" (what she was wearing when found).
Humans always assign names to people, even if they're not accurate, complementary, or real names. Give her something that has little to nothing to do with her real identity and go with it.
add a comment |
Use the name others use for her.
It's pretty standard that, if a patient can't be identified, a placeholder name gets assigned. Jane Doe (in the US anyway) is a very common one (John Doe for males).
If this continues longer than a few days, the hospital staff (or the people wherever she finds herself) will come up with a nickname for her. Or your main character may make up a name for herself. Sometimes this is just a first name. Other times it may be a first and last name, for legal purposes.
If you don't want to show the reader any name, you can refer to her as "the woman" or something similar. Some stories do that. It's not my style, but it works.
Or you might use a nickname that isn't a real name. For example: "5B" (the room she's in) or "Yosemite" (where she was found) or "Redshoe" (what she was wearing when found).
Humans always assign names to people, even if they're not accurate, complementary, or real names. Give her something that has little to nothing to do with her real identity and go with it.
Use the name others use for her.
It's pretty standard that, if a patient can't be identified, a placeholder name gets assigned. Jane Doe (in the US anyway) is a very common one (John Doe for males).
If this continues longer than a few days, the hospital staff (or the people wherever she finds herself) will come up with a nickname for her. Or your main character may make up a name for herself. Sometimes this is just a first name. Other times it may be a first and last name, for legal purposes.
If you don't want to show the reader any name, you can refer to her as "the woman" or something similar. Some stories do that. It's not my style, but it works.
Or you might use a nickname that isn't a real name. For example: "5B" (the room she's in) or "Yosemite" (where she was found) or "Redshoe" (what she was wearing when found).
Humans always assign names to people, even if they're not accurate, complementary, or real names. Give her something that has little to nothing to do with her real identity and go with it.
answered 3 hours ago
CynCyn
21.2k14598
21.2k14598
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