There are three recognized ways to tell a story. These are “First Person Narrative”, “Second Person Narrative”, and “Third Person Narrative. Most novels and short stories are written in either first person narrative or third person narrative. Almost none are written in second person narrative and this is because of the form of these stories.
Before we get to why second person narrative is a bad idea, lets look at what these three narratives are.
First person narrative is the telling of the story by the main character. It is characterized by the frequent use of “I did, I saw, I thought”, or other verbs preceded by “I”. Sometimes the use of “I” can become excessive, but since it’s the main character telling the story, the use of “I” is pretty unavoidable.
Any descriptions or thoughts about the other characters are only the opinions of the “first person”, and as such can be biased by the first person’s personal beliefs and thoughts. The first person narrator can not truly know what the other characters think. He or she can only surmise. This makes the first person like the writer of an opinion piece for a newspaper – the facts are stated and then interpreted by the narrator.
Third person narrative is the telling of the story by an uninvolved and unbiased, but all-seeing and all-knowing observer of all the characters. This “third person” relates the speech, actions and thoughts of all the characters as observed, but can not make any explanations or give opinions about the speech, actions or thoughts. The “third person” is like a reporter – just the facts and only the facts. It is left to the reader to develop his or her own opinions about the characters.
Now we come to a favorite of some writers and the bane of most readers – the “second person narrative”. The second person narrative usually has only two characters. It is like the first person narrative except the narrator not only tells the reader what the main character thinks, does, and says, but also tells the reader how he or she thinks, what he or she does, and what he or she says. It takes the form of, “You did”, “You say”, or other verb preceded by “You”. In effect, the second person narrative forces the reader to become the other character of the story.
While second person narrative is common in poetry, song lyrics, and some board and video games, it is almost entirely absent from prose. This is because most readers do not enjoy being told what they think, say and do in any given situation. They would much rather identify with one or more of the characters and form their own opinion of what those characters do, say, or think.
It is acceptable in poetry and song because while those forms of writing do usually convey a story, that story is intentionally aimed at a specific gender. Songs written in second person and sung by male singers are usually intended for a female audience and vice versa. Songs are actually poems set to music, and the same is true for poems.
The dislike of second person narrative stories is compounded when the reader is of a different gender than the character the second person narrator is addressing. Not many female readers would enjoy reading that her cock is rock hard and begins to ooze pre-cum when I stroke it. Not many male readers would enjoy reading that he gasps when I rub his clit and suck his nipples.
Either might work in a story in the LGBT genre, but there again, such stories are targeted at a very specific audience and not for the general population of readers.
Some confusion might arise regarding dialogue. It is perfectly acceptable to use “you” in first person narrative when telling the reader what the main character says. If the author writes something like, “I saw you on the street and thought you might need a ride, but I can see by your face you don’t”, this is not an example of second person narrative. The narrator is speaking to another character and relating an opinion, not telling the reader what he or she said or did.