The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now #341 -- More on POV

How do you choose the POV for a story? Does it happen organically, or is it something you put a lot of thought into before you begin? Or perhaps it's something assigned by your publisher?

For me, POV is something that has to be settled before I begin the act of writing. I can pre-write for days and months without it, but I can't put fingers to keyboard without knowing who is telling the story and how. For me, that's as intrinsic as a story to the plot, theme, and tone. In fact, that single decision can affect plot, theme, and tone drastically, I believe.

Sometimes, that decision is out of my hands, actually. There are a few publishers who have a preference, and request that writers write only in a certain POV, and as a writer who likes to earn a paycheck for my work, I have to abide by their call on that.