Sourced from The Rural Setting Thesaurus
SIGHTS
A gravel or sunbaked road, wide open country, barbed wire fencing, leaning white mileage posts nearly lost in the weeds, grass growing on the road’s shoulder and ditches, crops growing in pastures (whiskery barley, yellow canola flowers, tall stalks of timothy hay, harvested round hay bales sitting in crop stubble), grazing cattle, scruffy brush and stunted trees dotting fallow land, scatters of broken glass along the roadside, shredded rubber tires or plastic light casings from past accidents, cigarette butts and beer cans, clumps of dandelions and foxtail, birds (hawks, eagles, falcons) flying overhead, roadkill, buzzards gathering at the side of the road, hardy wildflowers, old rotting shacks and barn structures forgotten in fields, crows or ravens sitting on fence posts, streaks of cloud, bright sun and blue sky, a plane flying overhead, the occasional passing car, a tractor throwing up a plume of dust in its wake
SOUNDS
Wind feathering through the wild grass and crops, crickets and grasshoppers whirring, the cry of a predator bird, the rustle of a mouse or lizard skittering through a clump of weeds, the scuff of gravel under one’s boots, the rumble of an approaching truck, rain pattering onto the pavement, thunder grumbling, the trickle and burble of water running along a ditch after a storm, the distant clank of a tractor
SMELLS
Hot pavement and road tar, dry grass, dust, the rotten decay of roadkill, flowering weeds or nearby crops, cow manure, clean air
TASTES
Chewing on a stalk of sweet grass while walking, water from a water bottle, dry mouth, dust
TEXTURES AND SENSATIONS
The smooth bounce of a pebble in the palm, gravel poking through thin-soled shoes, the gentle slap of grass against one’s legs as one cuts across a field or walks in the ditch, seed heads of a ripe crop tickling one’s hands, the prickle of sunburn on the neck, the pinprick of a spiny burr as one pulls it off one’s pant leg, heat rising off the asphalt in waves, dust in the throat that makes one cough, sweat dampening one’s clothes and hair, dust coating one’s feet or shoes, gnats flying around one’s face, heat from the sun beating down on one’s head, a breeze blowing the hair off one’s neck or brow, patting a horse’s warm flank, the tickle of a horse’s whiskery chin as it eats grass from one’s palm, the weight of a backpack or jacket slung over one’s shoulder on the walk home
POSSIBLE SOURCES OF CONFLICT
A breakdown or flat tire
Hitting an animal with one’s car when it crosses the road
Getting lost in a desolate place
Becoming dehydrated
Creepy-looking adults who offer one a ride
Being caught out in the open during bad weather
A careless cigarette starting a grass fire
Coming across an animal who was hit by a car yet is still alive
A breakdown far from people with no cell phone or cell service
Coming across a wild animal while walking
Cutting across a field only to discover it has a bull protecting it
PEOPLE COMMONLY FOUND HERE: Farmers, locals, lost tourists looking for a shortcut
RELATED SETTINGS THAT MAY TIE IN WITH THIS ONE
Rural Volume: Barn, farm, farmer’s market, meadow, pasture, ranch
Urban Volume: Old pick-up truck
SETTING NOTES AND TIPS
If your setting is located in a real place, research the types of crops and animals that might naturally be found in the area. As well, consider the growing season. The stubble of green spring growth will lend a different view to the scene than bright fall foliage. Sensory details will also differ based on climate and location.
SETTING DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
Gravel crackled under the tires as we coasted along Old Red Mill road. Two nights in a row, people claimed to have seen lights in the dark sky and heard an odd whine that had no business being out among the wooden rail fences and cow pastures. Our headlights bathed the narrow road in light—and hit on two flashes in the ditch. Mary and I screamed and Jim hit the brakes, startling the mother deer and her spotted fawn into running across the road. The three of us busted up laughing. It was us who had no business being out here so late, chasing a silly rumor.
Techniques and Devices Used: Light and shadow, multisensory descriptions
Resulting Effects: Hinting at backstory, reinforcing emotion
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