SIGHTS
Multi-lane traffic, stoplights, sidewalks packed with pedestrians (business professionals heading to meetings, shoppers weighed down by bags, older women dragging a dolly for their groceries, dog walkers, students with backpacks, friends heading out for coffee), dented trash cans, vehicles (honking cars, taxi cabs, delivery vans, police cars, buses), panhandlers, storefronts with security shutters or window alarms, graffiti, trash and cigarette butts gathering in gutters, cars parked along the curb, bus stops, uniformed doormen assisting patrons in and out of residential buildings or high-end hotels, fire hydrants, cab stands, light poles, store awnings, large chain stores, colorful food trucks and street vendors, upscale businesses and specialty stores, narrow alleyways, tall brick buildings with fire escapes, large signs on buses and buildings advertising businesses and products, entertainment flyers for special events papering light poles and electricity boxes, construction (scaffolding taking over sidewalks, security fencing, wood panels and tarps blocking access, cranes moving heavy materials, wooden walkways detouring around a site), street sweepers late at night, planted trees in the sidewalk, decorative lights strung up, buskers playing music and entertaining those passing by, menu stands and restaurant employees trying to entice people to come try the food
SOUNDS
Sirens, horns honking, people talking on their cell phones, the ping of crosswalk lights, delivery trucks beeping as they back up, brakes squealing, people swearing or yelling, heels clacking on the sidewalk, construction noise (jackhammers, air tools jittering and whining, heavy loads of lumber or pipe being dropped), the whoosh of a city bus speeding past
SMELLS
Pollution (car exhaust, motor oil, etc.), cooking oil from fast food fryer vats, coffee being brewed, sweat and body odor, perfume, wet concrete during a rainstorm
TASTES
Food and drink bought from street vendors, restaurants, cafés, and wine bars
TEXTURES AND SENSATIONS
Tired feet after a long day at work, being bumped and jarred by other people on the sidewalk, one’s heel catching in a sidewalk crack or grate, being splashed by cold water from a car driving through a puddle, squeezing oneself through a busy coffeehouse doorway, the smooth handle of a cab door, the give of springs as one sits on a cab’s seat, gripping tight to a purse strap to dissuade theft, mashing one’s head against the shoulder to hold a phone in place and keep one’s hands free, the cold drizzle of rain sliding down one’s collar when one has forgotten an umbrella, the gritty pelt of dirt against one’s face when a gust of wind carries dust from construction sites, exhaust burning one’s throat and causing a coughing fit, the cold wind barreling between buildings
POSSIBLE SOURCES OF CONFLICT
One’s purse being snatched
Getting lost in a big city
Being dropped off by a cab in the wrong location
Pickpockets
Food poisoning from poorly prepared street food
Being bumped and dropping one’s phone or keys down a grate
Altercations with strangers
Witnessing a crime or random act of violence
Losing a child in the rush of a busy street
Being double-parked
Getting a parking ticket
One’s car getting trapped when other drivers parallel park too closely
PEOPLE COMMONLY FOUND HERE
Business owners, employees, homeless people, locals, police officers, taxi drivers, tourists
RELATED SETTINGS THAT MAY TIE IN WITH THIS ONE
Alley, art gallery, bank, bookstore, casual dining restaurant, city bus, coffeehouse, construction site, deli, fast food restaurant, parade, parking garage, police car, pub, taxi
SETTING NOTES AND TIPS
The location of a street, as well as the time of year, will change the way it looks and feels. Some urban streets are walled by high-rises filled with Fortune 500 companies or expensive apartments; doormen can often be found on the sidewalks, waiting under fancy awnings to assist clients or apartment owners in and out of buildings. Other areas of a city may not be in a business district or prime real-estate area. They may even be located in an area where the buildings are older and crime is more prevalent. Also, some big cities have neighborhoods that are dominated by a specific ethnicity. Specialty stores and restaurants in this area will often cater to this specific group of people, adopting the colors, styles, and advertising that is common for that culture.
SETTING DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
After a brutal three-hour meeting going over specs, I needed a break. I headed toward a latte stall near the start of Ratton Avenue’s popular shopping district. Sunlight gleamed against the office windows, but the sidewalk was damp from an earlier storm, forcing me into a child’s game of leapfrog over the pools of water. When the kids were little we’d had so much fun after the rain, jumping in puddles and scattering water with our matching red boots. I smiled. Those days were long past, but I drew in a deep, clean breath and for a moment, they were somehow here with me too.
Techniques and Devices Used: Contrast, multisensory descriptions, weather
Resulting Effects: Hinting at backstory, reinforcing emotion