SIGHTS
Gray concrete pillars, a low roof, exit signs, stripes painted on the pitted pavement, oil stains, cigarette butts, pea gravel or mud clumps scattered across the ground, scuff marks along the walls of the exit ramps, glass or metal doors leading to a stairwell and automated payment machines, shoe marks on the pillars and walls, brown water stains on the concrete roof, signage (turning arrows, exit and stop signs, numbers or letters pinned to posts for orientation), rows of cars and trucks parked carefully within the lines, brake lights coming on, people heading to and from their cars (holding store bags, packages, or briefcases), cars circling for a spot, a flickering light overhead that casts odd shadows as the bulb starts to die, areas that are cordoned off for maintenance with wooden blockades or tape, a collection of maintenance supplies (painting or plaster buckets, ladders, other repair supplies) sitting in a parking space behind chain link fencing
SOUNDS
Brakes squealing, motors rumbling, a car horn echoing sharply off the walls, voices, arguments cut off by a door slamming shut, engines revving, motors pinging as they cool, the blowing whir of giant fans clearing out exhaust, backfiring and gears grinding, people talking on their phones as they walk to their car, a lightbulb buzzing, sticky stains creating suction noises as one walks over them, elevator doors dinging and then closing shut, the clink of keys as one pulls them out of a pocket or purse, beeps as cars are locked and unlocked by remote, the echo of footsteps crossing the cement, the clank of a chain from a rolling door on the entrance and exit
SMELLS
Motor oil, exhaust, smoke, dirt and stone, spilled antifreeze, road salt
TASTES
No food is associated with this setting, however characters may bring food or drink with them (like a bag of popcorn after watching a movie, for example).
TEXTURES AND SENSATIONS
Sticky pavement pulling at one’s shoes, the smoothness of a polished doorknob one twists or pulls to access the stairwell or elevator, punching the plastic buttons in the elevator to reach different parking levels, the points of cold metal as one selects the correct key for one’s vehicle, accidentally nudging a dirty post as one gets into the car and then brushing the dust from one’s sleeve
POSSIBLE SOURCES OF CONFLICT
Feeling fearful at discovering a homeless person using the garage for a warm place to sit or sleep
Walking to one’s car and feeling followed
A section of lights going out
Getting to one’s car and being unable to find one’s keys
A carjacking or abduction
Being approached by someone asking for help
Arriving at one’s car to discover it has been damaged (paint scrapes, a dented bumper, a break-in, etc.)
Forgetting where one parked
PEOPLE COMMONLY FOUND HERE
The people using an underground or multi-level parking garage (also known as a parkade) will depend on where it is located. Working professionals and people employed within a high density location would be the most likely to use a parkade situated in a busy business district downtown, while shoppers and mall employees would use one attached to a mall. If underground parking is part of an apartment building, only those living there would have access to it. Often maintenance people doing work in the building have a storage area in the parking garage, and so they too may be seen coming and going.
RELATED SETTINGS THAT MAY TIE IN WITH THIS ONE
Big city street, elevator, parking lot, shopping mall
SETTING NOTES AND TIPS
Many business buildings have underground parking, as do apartments and malls. Freestanding parking structures at hospitals, airports, train stations and other busy locations are also common sights in bigger cities. The size and lighting of a parking garage will vary, and the time of day or night will dictate how busy the parking garage is. Some are patrolled or have a security booth, but as automation increases, these are becoming more and more rare.
Parking garages cause many people discomfort, especially those who have been victimized in some way, or who suffer from anxiety. The low ceilings, packed-in cars and narrow lanes can also cause a bit of claustrophobia to emerge, making this a great setting to bring out tension. Not only can you build a sense of stress or unease in your character as they interact with this setting, you will at the same time trigger emotional memories in your readers as they are reminded of their own past experiences in parking garages.
SETTING DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
Halfway to her Grand Cherokee, the lights overhead started to flicker. Mary stopped, her heel skidding against the dirty cement in a sandy rasp. The rows of parked cars, mud-splattered cement posts and faded yellow paint strips came and went in rapid flashes. In a movie, this would be the point when a deranged escaped convict would jump out between parked cars and axe me to death. The thought broke her paralysis and she ran the last twenty feet to her truck, jamming the button on her key fob to unlock the door.
Techniques and Devices Used: Light and shadow, multisensory descriptions
Resulting Effects: Establishing mood, reinforcing emotion, tension and conflict