SIGHTS
Curved cement walls, rusted metal grates, pipes, mesh debris collectors, standing water, canals and tunnels, larger reservoirs, raised walkways, center channels in large pipes for water flow, manhole access points, ladders leading up to the street, graffiti on the walls, oily water peppered with waterlogged garbage, clots of water foam and other slimy buildup, access chambers and tunnels that branch off the main line, shadows, mold and algae, dripping water, rats, spiders, cockroaches, beetles, centipedes, drug paraphernalia, weak light shining down from street level grates, aqueducts, slimy walls, dead rodents floating in the water, air vents, overflow lines high up on the walls, discolored brick walls, debris caught in grates (sodden plastic bags and fabric, leaves, branches, remnants of cardboard boxes), cracked cement, rust trails bleeding from pipe access points on the wall, paint-blistered signs leading work crews to designated areas, bobbing flashlight beams from work crews or other visitors
SOUNDS
Dripping water, splashes and odd echoes, the squeak and click of rats congregating, sloshing footsteps, urban sounds from above (traffic, street sounds, voices), the roar of subway trains causing the pipes to vibrate, manmade waterfalls to create drainage flow, gurgling water in the pipes, roaring water at high capacity (during or after storms), running water, debris scraping along the edges of pipes and catching on grates, the high-pitched squeal of brakes from nearby subway lines
SMELLS
Stagnant, dirty water, an overpowering odor of sewage (if the sewer is used partially for sewage), decomposition, pollutants (motor oil, grease, other lubricants that wash in with the street water), the tang of wet stone, mold, rust
TASTES
Some settings have no specific tastes associated with them beyond what the character might bring into the scene (chewing gum, mints, lipstick, cigarettes, etc.). For scenes like these, where specific tastes are sparse, it would be best to stick to descriptors from the other four senses.
TEXTURES AND SENSATIONS
Water seeping into one’s boots, cold water soaking through one’s clothing, rats that bump into or run over one’s boots while on a walkway, sliding a hand along a slimy wall, the cold iron rungs of a ladder, being bumped by unseen debris in knee-deep murky water, feeling things brush against one’s rubber boots, nausea rising in one’s throat, claustrophobia, arms wind-milling in an attempt to keep one’s balance on a dry ledge, swinging a flashlight from side to side or up and down, a back or neck ache from bending over in a narrow passage, jerking away to avoid something nasty floating in the water, rubbing sweat off the face with the back of the hand, drips of water falling on one’s head or sliding down one’s neck, stepping on mushy debris underwater, sweating inside a protective suit, the pinch of facemask straps
POSSIBLE SOURCES OF CONFLICT
Having to flee to a sewer as a means of escape
Getting stuck in a sewer during a storm or some other time when the water runs quickly
Rats and snakes
Falling into the water
Claustrophobia
A fear of drowning
Ingesting dirty water
A wound getting infected from contaminated water
Stepping on dangerous debris
Losing one’s light source
Running into strangers underground when one is far from help
Getting lost and being unable to find an exit point in the dark
Hypothermia
RELATED SETTINGS THAT MAY TIE IN WITH THIS ONE
PEOPLE COMMONLY FOUND HERE
Civil engineers, inspectors, maintenance workers, urban explorers, vagrants
SETTING NOTES AND TIPS
While sewers are often used in video games and movies to house hidden rooms and provide privacy for clandestine meetings, in reality, they’re hard to access and are usually uninhabitable. That said, sewers differ depending on where they are located. Some are so confined that they are difficult for city workers to navigate much less a character in a novel, while others are expansive and surprisingly well kept as they once functioned as a channel to transport supplies into a growing city. Unless your novel takes place in a specific contemporary location, you have some creative license; just make sure to pull in enough realistic sensory detail (especially smell) to make the setting feel real and vivid to readers. If your sewer setting takes place in a real location, do some legwork and see what information you can find about the sewer system.
SETTING DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
The beam of my flashlight played off the filth-encrusted walls, the tide line showing where the water had gone down a good four feet. Claws ticked against metal and I jumped. My light caught the tail end of something scurrying along a rusty pipe. A shudder ran through me. I hated it down here. Hated it. Cold water pressed against my waterproof gear, and I nudged unseen debris with each step. Near the entrance of the offshoot tunnel, an unholy stench slammed into me. I pressed a sleeve to my nose; the blockage was close. After a week’s worth of rain in half a dozen neighborhoods, there were sure to be a few deceased pets or other animals caught in the grates. I hoped that would be all I found.
Techniques and Devices Used: Light and shadow, multisensory descriptions, weather
Resulting Effects: Establishing mood, reinforcing emotion, tension and conflict