Two questions

[Pandorius999]

Have two questions and instead of making two threads figured one would suffice.

1] is it better to describe a scene where the protagonist is watching something sexual unfold through a door crack/window /hole in wall in first person or third? How much detail should /can be given in each case keeping in mind the viewing angle ?

2] while writing stories based on earlier periods (not neccesarily historical but not Atlantis either) how much of the dress and manners need to be described? I'm not talking of a quickie sex story but one with a rather meandering plot so I'd like a answer in that context. Actually I'm at a loss about 18th century dressing styles hence this question.

3] (stupid question ) how well illuminated would a woman's body be if a candle is held right above her midsection?

[Chagrin]

Originally Posted by Pandorius999

1] is it better to describe a scene where the protagonist is watching something sexual unfold through a door crack/window /hole in wall in first person or third? How much detail should /can be given in each case keeping in mind the viewing angle ?

Is that scene your only concern? The scene should be written with the same perspective as the rest of the story. Swapping perspectives irritates readers.

If you haven't started writing yet, consider the story as a whole, not just the scene, to determine whether it should be first or third person. Is the protagonist likable and trustworthy, and is he in every scene? If so, maybe first person works. But if you want to float between character's heads, or not get in their heads at all, third person is best.

Originally Posted by Pandorius999

2] while writing stories based on earlier periods (not neccesarily historical but not Atlantis either) how much of the dress and manners need to be described? I'm not talking of a quickie sex story but one with a rather meandering plot so I'd like a answer in that context. Actually I'm at a loss about 18th century dressing styles hence this question.

If you're writing a long story with a meandering plot, description is essential for the reader to get sucked into the story. If we can't see what's going on, we have no fuel for our imagination and we won't see what you see.

[ejls]

Originally Posted by Pandorius999

Have two questions and instead of making two threads figured one would suffice.

1] is it better to describe a scene where the protagonist is watching something sexual unfold through a door crack/window /hole in wall in first person or third? How much detail should /can be given in each case keeping in mind the viewing angle ?

2] while writing stories based on earlier periods (not neccesarily historical but not Atlantis either) how much of the dress and manners need to be described? I'm not talking of a quickie sex story but one with a rather meandering plot so I'd like a answer in that context. Actually I'm at a loss about 18th century dressing styles hence this question.

3] (stupid question ) how well illuminated would a woman's body be if a candle is held right above her midsection?

1. How much do you want the reader to know? How much description do you want to go into? How much can the hidden person see?

2. As stated in another thread, someone in the 60's would not be driving a Hummer. Make your facts accurate.

3. I think you can check that one out yourself.

[Chagrin]

Oh, I forgot to mention: You can write that scene in third person yet still only cover what the protagonist sees. In a sense, act like it's a movie and the camera is looking through the hole, so only describe what the camera (and hence the protagonist) sees. Yet it can be written in third person just fine.

Basically, there are three kinds of 3rd person views:

Omniscient: Can go anywhere, anytime, and get into anyone's head.
Limited Omniscient: Can only get into the head of a few (or just one) character.
Objective: Can go anywhere, anytime, but only sees what is visible in the world, and cannot get into the heads of characters.

Sometimes I go even further and write in a "Limited Objective" perspective, being that I write objectively, but follow only one character. It's even more strict than the traditional forms, but I find it's a fun challenge to write in. This is the style I was talking about above, where the camera sees through the hole with the protagonist.

[Pandorius999]

Thanks guys. I think I'd stick with the limited perspective as I'd be entering the heads of the others later. One character especially is "dark" in the sense of her thoughts and actions being different from what the protagonist thinks. Can't use her vision or thoughts at this point or the plot would unravel.

How about sending the source of lighting around using a third party to show various facets of the scene as it progresses? That would create a sort of mobile camera with a limited range. One could create two second mysteries to add to the plot.

[snowleopard3200]

Originally Posted by Pandorius999

Have two questions and instead of making two threads figured one would suffice.

3] (stupid question ) how well illuminated would a woman's body be if a candle is held right above her midsection?

In answer to this question, and figuring that by midsection you may mean between the stomach to chest in height; most historical candles would have an illumination similiar to a 40-60watt soft white lightbulb, with a flickering motion as the flame interacted with the air due to movement of a person holding the candle, air flow and the like.

One part that will make a difference is the quality of the candle itself, based on what the wicker is made of and the skill of the maker as well; for a candle made of tallow will tend to smoke more, have a odor similiar to a damp dog right next to you, while other candles burn with a clear flame and sweet smell if made with the wicker surrounded by bees wax and such that have perfumes added to them.

Candles are somewhat fickel things, even when made by the old masters who were years in skill of repeatedly dipping and drying them in wax over many days of time; sometimes you just got things wrong.

[Cheltenham]

Originally Posted by Pandorius999

Have two questions and instead of making two threads figured one would suffice.

You were correct in doing so.

1] is it better to describe a scene where the protagonist is watching something sexual unfold through a door crack/window /hole in wall in first person or third? How much detail should /can be given in each case keeping in mind the viewing angle ?

Third. You are able to mention what the people in the room are feeling and if they realize they're being watched at all. If the entire chapter is about a guy watching someone through a door/window/crack in the wall, then you can keep one perspective throughout the entire chapter. Once you begin a new chapter, hopefully the scenery has changed and your characters aren't watching or being watched any longer.

You would be describing things like you were watching a movie. Whether the watcher gets involved determines how much detail there is going to be. It should be enough to keep the reader interested.

2] while writing stories based on earlier periods (not neccesarily historical but not Atlantis either) how much of the dress and manners need to be described? I'm not talking of a quickie sex story but one with a rather meandering plot so I'd like a answer in that context. Actually I'm at a loss about 18th century dressing styles hence this question.

Include what is relevant. If telling your readers what color the walls were somehow ties into the plot, then do so. Don't bombard your actual story with too many unnecessary idioms or you'll lose the audience. Relevancy includes things that your characters are repeatedly interacting with.

3] (stupid question ) how well illuminated would a woman's body be if a candle is held right above her midsection?

She would be lit in comparison to the height of the candle, the strength of its flame, the breadth of her figure and the color of her skin.