Okay, so I get the idea that the MC represents the “I” perspective. In films, (where it’s not immediately obvious) you can often figure out who is the MC is because of what is revealed or what is withheld from the audience (like in The Prestige).
My question is about novels. If a novel is told in the first person, the narrator is most likely the MC. If a novel is told using a traditional third person omniscient, you probably figure out who the MC is the same way you would for a film.
But most modern novels are written with in the free indirect style – third person, but “close” through the eyes of one or more characters. Depending on the genre, the novel might have the POV jump among many characters.
So in such cases, how do you tell who the MC is?
More importantly, when writing a book like this, how do you make sure you convey clearly to the audience who the MC is?
In my own case, I have an IC who is also the Protagonist. I am imagining scenes that will have to be told though his point of view. Will this confuse the reader as to the storyform? Or does it matter?