Snarky Brides

First-person narrative on wedding website?

312Emily312Emily member
First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
edited June 2014 in Snarky Brides
So I took a lot of care writing in third-person POV when writing about FI's proposal (even though it's like 7 sentences total) and how we met page, and first-person plural for things like the guest information page ("We've secured room blocks at hotels X, Y and Z").  The POVs are consistent by page.

And then this week I was looking at a (male) relative's wedding website. The proposal, wedding party, and how we met section were all from the bride's POV only (so first-person singular).  The proposal section is especially painful to read, as it's a full page long, details the whole week leading up to it, and covers things I'd never publish ("But he wasn't going to propose, so I didn't feel like doing anything and was upset." What?!)  I feel like if she'd just stuck with a neutral third-person narrative or first-person plural, it would have been better, and my cousin wouldn't seem like an afterthought.  It would have been ok if she inserted a his story/her story thing in the how we met and proposal sections, but that's not the case.  Their website is just all about her, and it's really sad.

Do you guys read into the POV of the wedding website?  I feel like anything in first-person singular without both POVs presented is just kind of yucky.  It's not about one person... it's about the couple.
ETA: small clarification
image

Re: First-person narrative on wedding website?

  • The only time I care is when it keeps switching back and forth. One I was looking at recently kept going from "We" to "Bill and Sally."  Drove me nuts. 

    I think a lot of times people just write them in 1st person b/c they are the one writing it and they aren't even thinking how it comes across. 


    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
    image
  • 312Emily312Emily member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited June 2014
    AddieCake said:
    The only time I care is when it keeps switching back and forth. One I was looking at recently kept going from "We" to "Bill and Sally."  Drove me nuts. 

    I think a lot of times people just write them in 1st person b/c they are the one writing it and they aren't even thinking how it comes across. 


    That's also annoying. But I do think it's ok if the narratives switch by page. But if it switches like that on the same page, that's just hard to read.
    image
  • Our whole thing is 1st person plural.
  • Welcome page first person, about us third person. And cat gifs.
    image



    Anniversary
  • FiancBFiancB member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    This is why ours is really short and sweet. We skipped stuff about the proposal and wedding party because well nobody really cares. It's just a brief "welcome, we can't wait to see you! Here's our hotel blocks, here's the info about the ceremony/reception site" and there's one picture on each page.  I should've thrown in cat gifs though!
    image
  • I did our whole site in first person because I saw some opinions around here saying people thought third person was silly since people KNOW you are writing the website...
    Anniversary
    image
  • We did ours as if each page was written by one of us or the other.  For example, the "Welcome" page is written in 1st person plural, and "signed" at the bottom by FI and I.  The "Our Proposal" page is written from my POV, and at the bottom is "signed" with my name.  The "Our Wedding Party" page is written by FI, and "signed" at the bottom with his name.  Most of our pages are done in 1st person plural, though.  
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
    Mr. Bean Flipping the Bird
  • To be honest, I don't really bother reading wedding websites. We only have one bc it's a DW and the info is geared toward travel. Most likely if people don't know how Mr. E and I met, they wouldn't be on our guest list. I'm not sure the POV on a temporary website matters all that much.
  • I did our whole site in first person because I saw some opinions around here saying people thought third person was silly since people KNOW you are writing the website...
    I think what OP is saying is that is was done first person as in "I," not first person plural as in "we," which makes it look like one part of the couple is not part of it. 
    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
    image
  • Do people actually read wedding websites? I only go to them to get hotel and registry information. Honestly I think they are a little silly so I didn't bother having one. And I make internet for a living lol
  • I love wedding websites, so people definitely read them. It's annoying when they get only one persons perspective, though.


    Daisypath Anniversary tickers Daisypath Anniversary tickers



  • The only thing that annoys me is when it's obvious that no one bothered to proof read the freaking thing.  
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • The POV issue doesn't bother me so much as painful, TMI details do.  I read one that was too long and written from the bride's POV. They had a very casual proposal but I felt like she was trying to justify how casual it was: "...but it was just so perfect for us."  For the level of casualness, it certainly didn't warrant several paragraphs.  
    ________________________________


  • melbensomelbenso member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited June 2014
    Our proposal story was in third person, I think. It was about 2 sentences.  "FI proposed to Melbenso on the beach in Florida at sunset.  It was beautiful, and of course she said yes."  - Something like that, complete with a picture we took of the sunset after the proposal.

    I can't imaging doing a first person one, especially one with that much info:  "I was pretty sure FI was going to propose that night.  I even had an extra margarita at dinner that night because I was so excited.  He asked me to go get sized for a ring a few months before and had been very insistent when we were planning our vacation that he wanted to take a sunset walk on the beach that night.  But since FI knows I love surprises and really wanted to proposal to be a complete surprise, I let him think it was completely unexpected, even though he's really bad at keeping secrets.  I'm sure I would have been just as excited anyway."  No.  That just doesn't work.
    image
  • We did the "about us" page in a way where we wrote about each other, so it's "According to Jane, John is....", and vice versa. That way we could make it kinda funny and joke on each other a bit. It works for us. The rest is in first person plural. 

    I don't like it when a couple essentially changes all the details of their relationship to make it sound fairly-tale perfect. You don't have to say you met while drunk at a bar and were sleeping together before your first official date or that you were both seeing other people when you met, but don't make it sound like you met in a field of daisy's and it was love at first sight, until you finally made it serious 6 months later, or whatever. Some are just laughable! 
  • Ours is entirely 3rd person. I don't know...I really dislike when things are written in first person on wedding websites the entire time. I know that usually it is just one person in the couple working on it, but I feel like the website shouldn't read that way. At least pretend you both put effort into it haha :) . But that's just my opinion.

    And I get a big laugh when people put too many details about their relationship on their sites, like things that outsiders won't appreciate or understand. I have a good friend who included that their "special dinner" that evening was hamburger helper on the roof of their apartment. I just can't.





    image

This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards