Cenonn's How to Holofic and Writing in General

You are now learning about 2nd person narrators

Second person is a bit bizarre. If you are going to go to a bookstore and pick a random book, it'll most likely be a first person or a third person narrator. That's because those types of narrators are the norm.

So what is a second person narrator? A second person narrator uses the pronoun "you" to address the reader. This means that the reader is a character in the story and the events are happening to them.

Where do you normally find them? Second person narrators are often found in guides and self-help, video games, advertising slogans, and song lyrics.

However, with the rise of stories where the reader is the main character, second person narrators are becoming more and more commonly used in literature. Although it is a less common choice for telling a story, it can give it a unique and powerful perspective if you executed it properly. And execution is a tricky business.

First, let's look at examples of Holofics that are in second person. We got Gl1tch3dOracle's My Eldritch God (Ninomae Ina'nis x !GN!Reader), Man Eater (Gawr Gura x !GN!Reader), and Death Can Love (Mori Calliope x !GN!Reader). There's also EvertreeInn's Vtuber Oneshots. If you've noticed, all of them are reader-inserts and so, second person narrators work well with them.

Now then... If you are still unsure if you want to write a second person narrator, I'll give you some reasons to try it out.

Second person narrators have an uncommon point of view. There's a sea of fictional books that have a first person or a third person narrator. Second person narrators are really rare. In other words, your Holofic would be instantly unique once you use second person. Just remember that unique doesn't mean interesting though, okay?

It also creates far more closeness than a first person narrator. I mean... You are not being told a story by a narrator. You are a character in the story. You interact with the other characters. Heck. You can even date some of them.

Lastly, second person narrators make you grow as a writer. If you write in second person, you'll find out the limits of your abilities and see how you can improve yourself. The unique and tricky perspective makes you push beyond your limits and go plus ultra.

Now then... We need to learn about how to make a good second person narrator. Sit tight and read on!

First and foremost... Research the others that went before you. Gl1tch3dOracle's books are a good starting point to see how a second person narrator worked. Try to see what they did and imitate it. I'm not telling you to go ahead and copy their writing style. I'm just telling you to observe what they did and figure out how they made it work. You can then add your own twists as you go.

Second tip is to always imagine your reader to be the narrator. So that means you have to be very vague. You can't give descriptions to your narrator if you don't want to ruin your readers' immersion.

Third is to stay conscious of your voice. Sometimes, you might end up writing in your own voice. That's a no-no. Always remember who is the narrator and remove yourself from the equation. Unless you're saying that your voice is an average reader's voice, you should try to differentiate between yourself and the narrator.

My fourth advice is to be descriptive. That's a given. A narrator, no matter what type, has to be descriptive. If your reader is your narrator, you have to make it credible. Drag them into your world by talking about details and stuff. Vividly describe the setting, other characters, and events. Do your job and write out a good description of everything.

The last tip is that you should try to use present tense. Now then... A second person narrator feels really close to the reader. So go ahead and make them feel even closer. By using present tense and active verbs, your readers will feel like it's happening in real time. They will feel the thrill and suspense of your plot. Your reader will be fully immersed in your world.

I think I covered the basics of a second person narrator. I don't have any experience in writing these kinds of narrators so my tips on it may be a bit weird. And since I have nothing else to say, I'll say nothing at all and move to the next chapter: the third person narrator.