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Okay, everybody on this board seems to have a weakness for something. It may be vivid imagery. It may be colorful characters. Something that if the rest of the writing is just plain mediocre will make you crawl back wanting more. For me, it's an interesting perspective.

Now, let's take what we learned in school- 1st person, the narrarator is in the story and telling you what's going on, 2nd person, you are in the story, and 3rd person, you and the narrarator are outside the story. (I'm not even going to go into 2nd person because I've never read anything published in it)

But there's so much more to it that can change the whole thing. And what really bothers me is that most amateur writers just start in 3rd person omnicient (or, if they're 'devious,' 1st person limited) without thinking about it, or take an original perspective and simply use it as their one and only hook. Perspective should compliment the story, not be more important than it.

Take these into consideration; many a time have an intersting perspective been the saving grace of an otherwise dull story.

Now, onto the different types.

1st person limited: includes "diary format"
This is what most people use when they mean 1st person.
Advantages: can add spice to anything if you have an interesting enough narrarator
Disadvantages: you have to think too much. You have to wonder what they'll sound like all the time considering what education level they'll have, you'll have to reason out how perceptive they are, a lot of things that you can get away with in 3rd person omnicient are downright implausable in this perspective.
Notable examples: Catcher in the Rye, Jim Butcher's Dresden Files

1st person omnicient: "memory", "memoir", or "flashback" format, columnist format
This means that all events in the story are after the fact and the narrarator knows better. (I kinda made this up, if you can think up a better term, tell me)
Advantages: The narrarator is given more freedom to jump around, be forgetful, and etc. Pretty much everything in 1st person limited.
Disadvantages: Everything in 1st person limited AND tenses AND keeping straight what character knew at the time and what they know at time of story telling.
Notable examples: Cold Sassy Tree

1st person dual/multi limited: includes "correspondence" format
This means that you have more than one 1st person narrarator
Advantages: everything in 1st person limited, if you get bored with one, you can go ahead and switch to the other.
Disadvantages: You have to keep two viewpoints in your head without mixing them, everything in 1st person limited, AND you have to remember to switch to the other so your reader doesn't wonder, "what happened to the other guy?" every so often.
Notable examples: Dracula

3rd person limited:
You follow only one character around, only hear their thoughts, etc.
Advantages: you can jump to things that your main character doesn't know about without them going, WTF!!, your main character can still have their secrets, and so can everybody else.
Disadvantages: Even though everybody has their gives, you can't get into other people's heads. Your main character has to be interesting enough without him narrarating to get your reader's attention even when they're kept an arm's length away.
Notable Examples: A Series of Unfortunate Events, Harry Potter, many children's books

3rd person omnicient:
Everybody's fair game
Advantages: Just that- everybody's fair game- just because you still have a main character doesn't mean you can explore the depths of the other character's brains. You can also digress into things the character wouldn't notice at the time without the reader caring so much.
Disadvantages: it often sounds jumpy and disconjointed if you're not careful.You've still got to have control even though it allows you a lot of freedom.
Notable examples: Brian Jacques' Redwall series, Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide

3rd person dual/multi limited:
Like 1st person dual/multi limited, only more freedom
Advantages: You're almost gauranteed to have something interesting happening to one character, so there are no real slow points.
Disadvantages: see 1st person dual/multi limited, minus the parts on 1st person.
Notable examples: The Bartimaeus Trilogy, even though one viewpoint is 1st person.

3rd person dual/multi omnicient:
Like 3rd person dual/multi limited, only everywhere your followed character go you can hear everything.
Advantages: Your reader feels like they're getting a lot when you can still trick them and have secrets- good confusion of the reader. See advantages on 3rd person dual/multi limited
Disadvantages: you've got to restrain yourself from doing too much or else it'll just end up plain 3rd person omnicient.
Notable examples: some of Terry Pratchett's Discoworld Novels, though that's really stretching it.

Ah, thankies, Flore.

I know that some Poe is in 2nd person, but I've never read it.

I've pretty much chose 3rd person dual limited, although I'm mulling over a couple scenes that I did in omnicient that don't involve either of the characters. stressed

Now, is that one title or two?

Or you could mix all of the above in some terrifying blend of perspectives. Notable examples include Bleak House, in which the chapters oscillate between the third person limited narrative of the court case and the first person omniscient voice of Esther, telling a much more personal story of the three wards of John Jarndice; Thief's Gamble alternates between chapters of third person omniscient of the main narrative about Livak, the titular thief and textbook extracts (arguably first person limited or third person); Possession structures itself (third person) around the poetry and the letters (first person) of two dead characters.

And there's the ever popular stream-of-consciousness. Sometimes incoherent, sometimes deep, sometimes trivial. I suppose it's technically first person limited, but it's a little different. Mrs Dalloway and all that.

So have fun with the Russion Dolls of narrative ways.

You could also write a second person story, actually. It doesn't always work very well, but I've seen it done a fair bit in some fandoms. Instead of a MarySue, you get to insert the reader into the story. (These tend to assume the reader is attracted to the other main character. Romance. I've seen Legolas/you, JackSparrow/you etcetc...) Also used a fair bit in those choose-your-own-adventure books.

But stylistically it can be very interesting. Jorge Luis Borges wrote a few very interesting shorts in second person. Give it try sometime. Think of it as challenge of the day. Bend the narrative to your whim?

Actually, the article had me think of different ways to tell as story. Not just through conventional narrative ("There was once a man... the end." wink but through all the different instances of writing in our lives. What traces and records does one leave as footprints upon the sands of time? We leave a little bit of ourself in everything we write and everything that was written about us. How much of it is needed to tell a story?

Can you construct a story through the medium of wanted posters (lists of the man's crimes) or a series of lonely-hearts adverts? Can you tell a story in the margins of a text book, a dialogue of sorts through the scribblings of it's readers? Can you tell a story through a diary? Through a series of wills, through wishes, through book reviews?

I remember a book which was composed entirely of the main character's attempt to write her own biography through the different years of her life, she never get's past the first chapter. So every chapter was chapter one.

A Thousand Pieces of Gold seems to set out to explain Chinese idioms, yet the author digresses and you get poigant flashes into her life. She tells her story whilst retelling the stories behind common Chinese idioms.

Second challenge. Do something crazy with the narrative. Tell it as a sermon, an allegory, a fairy tale. Tell is with a character's will, book review, shopping list.