Actually POV is sort of a misleading name, but it's widely used to talk about either following one single character through a whole story, or following more than one. It can also mean using first or third person to do that, but I'm going to break out the benefits and drawbacks to those in the next article.
For this article, I'm going to focus on why you should pick either Single POV (one character, one desire line), or Multiple POV (many characters, many desire lines).
What is a Desire Line?
I know it's odd to focus on desire, but it's sort of the central trade-off when you choose between Single and Multiple POVs. The reason drama (I'm using that word loosely to mean story tension) works is because somebody wants something they can't get right now. It's the classic question to move from character sketch to actual plot.
And it's what you are weakening when you choose not to follow just one character for the entire story. By weak I don't mean ineffective, just that when a reader has more than one character to root for, the overall effect of any one of their desires isn't as strong as when there is only one.
The desire line is what glues the character's actions to the plot, and moves them from just making a series of odd or even bad decisions, to moving toward or away from some larger goal.
In single POV, you are clearly tied to one desire, usually making that desire stronger simply because it is the only one. Bad writing excluded, Single POV is necessary when the character has desires that are more internal, more emotionally and less focused on overt plot moments.
In multiple POV, you have one desire line for each character who gets "screen time" with the reader. Even if everyone wants to save the princess, they don't want to do it out of the same desire. The lover wants a mate, but his buddy who you also follows wants to please his best friend. And the rouge that they meet along the way just wants gold. So the desires are always going to be different, and when you have more than one of them, overall, the strength of the story's desire line is weaker.
What is Narrative Distance?
Though it isn't the same as first or third person, it is very closely related to that choice, as I'll explain in the next article. For this discussion, narrative distance is how close the description of the action is to the character you are following.
Close narrative distance would be almost, if not, inside the character's body. Action originates from the character, and what others do must be observed by the character. Often this is done using first person, but it is not necessary to do so. The narrator is close to the character, if not the character herself. Thus you don't see distant action, and everything that happens is colored by the character.
Harry Potter is a third person, close narration, though Rowling does use prologues and other devices to get away from Harry occasionally. This is also referred to as the "Limited-Omnipotent" narrator, though that is actually most precisely a case of medium narrative distance. The narrator will make occasional comments, or see things the character does not. So it's helpful to ignore the idea of a narrator in this discussion and focus simply on how close to the character the description is.
Medium and Far Narrative Distance are normally done in third person, as it would be very odd for a first person narrative to see things that the charter isn't physically seeing, but I won't tell you it's impossible, just that it's likely to be weird and off-putting to a reader. (Confession: My main character, Xanatos, sees through other's eyes. So I have used a 1st/3rd split in some parts to show distant action that he is sensing via supernatural means.)
Jurassic Park is a prime example of medium narrative distance, bordering on far. The characters are followed, but Crichton hints and plays with reader anticipation at the same time, very clearly foreshadowing danger to increase tension and reader engagement.
So, why should I choose Single POV?
Are you telling an emotional journey? Is the main desire line romantic in nature? Are you exploring the inner dynamics of families, or inter-personal relationships in general? Have you created the world's coolest Anti-Hero? Are you talking about an amoral, or even kinda of bad desire like revenge?
All of these are good examples of when Single POV is going to net you better results than Muliple POV. It's not hard and fast, but a lot of the time, when the interior of a character is important, you want to be right there with them for all the gritty angst. And if the character is going to do things that the reader may balk at, Single POV gives you a chance to normalize and even create sympathy for what is otherwise an evil action, or a bad decision.
Single POV gives you close narrative distance almost by default, and strengthens that narrative tie between reader and character, allowing you to develop a deep appreciation of this character's life and desire.
You should use Single POV when the internal changes of a character are paramount to external plot elements.
Okay, so when should I choose Multiple POV?
Are you telling a quest story? (And it doesn't have to be literally going on quest, but are your characters after some boon that will help them fix/solve a problem in their regular lives?) Is this a thrilling ride of suspense and terror? Are you looking at external issues like spies or the collapsing economic market? Do you have an amazingly awesome party of uber-sexy heroes? Is the desire line relatively simple and easy to understand?
These are prime cases where Multiple POVs are going to net you better results. When the exterior plot elements are your focus, you are going to get more milage out of using medium or far narrative distance to really show how the world is working together to create the drama in your characters lives. It's hard to be scared if we don't see the signs of things to come, if the character isn't looking at the hand writing on the wall. We can't fear for the heroes life, if we don't see the shadow creeping up behind her. When the desire line is more universal, too many character details can actually bog you down. Knowing that your rogue is troubled by past relationships is better than knowing the intimate details of every one. Far narrative distance and switching between a few selected POVs means you can focus on the plot, the external elements, without getting bogged down by character angst.
Multiple POVs are usually told in third person, and usually set you up with at least medium narrative distance so you can show the whole world through which these character are trying to make their way. It allows you to focus on the plot and the inner workings of the group so the readers develop a deeper appreciation for the task at hand, rather than the individual lives of the characters.
How does this apply to New Adult?
New Adult tends to focus more on the emotional journey of the character than on overt elements. The final Harry Potter is an example of how this can be a problem for an author. It is a quest story, and would have been better told using Multiple POVs, showing how things at Hogwarts were worsening, and making the angst in the middle more bearable for the reader. (Because it would have been half as long.)
But Rowling had already established the series as Single POV using close narrative distance, so she was stuck and did the best she could with the plot she'd worked herself into.
Which means you should learn from her example and think extra hard about what you're really writing. It's entirely possible to have New Adult books that don't focus on the emotional journey, but there is something about the voice of these books that doesn't feel complete without the emotional aspect.
I definitely think you should keep your narrate distance close, even in third person, and even in Multiple POV. Part of New Adult is the psychological changes of the life-period under review, and the reader needs to be connected enough to get that aspect of any character that gets "screen time."
If you choose Multiple POVs, stick to three at most, unless you really have the time and space to develop them further. Three is a good number, it makes sense to humans on an instinctual level. You can have a 'hero,' a 'lover,' and a 'buddy' or 'villain,' for instance. Even more interesting and slightly more advanced is two heroes, who are each other's villains. Deathnote does this almost well.
Though your audience is likely older, you'll want to separate POVs by chapter at minimum. Riordan puts the characters name at the start of each chapter. That's probably a bit much for NA, but it won't necessarily hurt you to be clear when you switch. Following a pattern can be formulaic, but also helpful. Riordan does this as well, though I wish he'd broken it for the climax sequences.
And finally, the desire line is the only thing that will keep a reader going. If you loose that, you just have a bunch of scenes with no purpose. So make sure you understand how the POV you choose will affect the desire line of your story. Don't shoot yourself in the foot before you even start running.
