Building A Story Garden: The Power Of Settings In Fiction

Guys, I have to say thanks for the terrific response to our Setting books. Becca and I are both so pleased you’re happy with the newest family members.

Thank you for the reviews, the tweets, the recommendations to friends, and oh my, the #myfavoritethesaurus pictures! I am LOVING the pictures you’re taking.

Can I confess something?

This was a very nervous release for me. And while every author will tell you nerves never go away, you’d think that ol’ Angela would be a bit more chill seeing as this is her 4^th and 5^th rodeo. But no, not at all. Poor Becca’s been babysitting a total worrywart for the last few weeks (sorry, Becca!)

Up until now, I thought I was a bit freaked out because we’ve had a lot of challenges.

First, someone had this silly idea of doing two books at once again (sigh, me). Double the work at publishing time (nice one, Angela).

Second, halfway through writing these books, Becca and I detoured to create One Stop For Writers. And while we are both so thrilled with our unique online library, it meant a year-long break from the Setting Thesaurus. Finding our footing took time.

Finally we had, well, some outsourced production issues that created delays and caused errors. And, Becca and I hadn’t left ourselves enough buffer time to account for this. So everything really was down to the wire.

So yes, all these things have been swimming in Angela’s Dark Matter, adding to the anxiety, but it was only tonight as I sat down with my print copies (which only arrived today), that I realized WHAT was causing my nerves.

It wasn’t the rushing or stressing that we’d missed a typo or two.

It wasn’t flutters over trying to live up to our other books.

It was that I cared so much about getting this right.

Setting is often overlooked, passed over in favor of the characters and the plot. For many, setting is just sort of “there.”

We all know learning how to describe the setting so readers feel part of the world is a skill we need. But, here’s the truth: achieving this isn’t enough. Not if we want to transform the story and elevate the characters into complex, rich beings. People who could be real. Who readers could imagine meeting, talking with, and caring about. Maybe even falling for.

Setting is not a backdrop.

It isn’t just a jumble of sights and sounds and smells and tastes and textures. It is so much more.

Setting can…

     …create conflict or tension

     …foreshadow a coming event

     …encourage the character to make an emotion-driven action or choice

     …remind the character of their past, good or bad

     …poke at old wounds

     …challenge the character to face his fears

     …recreate a wounding event so the character can navigate it successfully and let go of past pain

     …deliver important backstory actively

     …characterize the story’s cast

     …display symbolism or motifs which reinforce a deeper message

     …convey a specific mood

     …steer the plot

     …test the character through obstacles and setbacks

     …give the setting an emotional value and deploy emotional triggers

(Oh, and of course, that other big thing…provide descriptive opportunities to make the reader feel part of the story.)

*To print the Setting Checklist above, visit our Tools For Writers Page. 🙂

In writing these books, Becca and I had our eyes opened to the raw power of the setting.

We realized how picking one for a scene must be a deliberate choice as it can directly influence how events unfold and who our characters become.

We became determined to peel back the curtain in hopes of helping others see what we were seeing: that the setting isn’t simply a piece of the fiction puzzle, it is the story garden where everything grows.

So tonight, as I looked through the two books, I grew calmer. I believe we did what we set out to do: nudge writers to think deeper about the setting, and how to use it to do more.

Because setting is all about “being” more. 🙂SaveSave

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