Introducing the Settings

 

SETTING SHOULD NEVER be an arbitrary choice. When you begin your story, always consider what type of settings the plot will require, then try to create the strongest reading experience with as few extraneous settings as possible. Consolidated settings will give both you and the readers less to keep track of and will allow you more opportunities for deepening the settings you do have. They’ll also allow you to create thematic resonance by returning to them at key moments, thus bringing their presence in the story full circle.

 

Exercise: Answer the following questions about your story’s settings.

 

Question #1: What one setting defines your story?

 

Examples:

• Prison. (Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King)

 

• Rome. (Gladiator directed by Ridley Scott)

 

• A galaxy far, far away. (Star Wars directed by George Lucas)

 

Question #2: What “normal world” does your story open in?

 

Examples:

• Sleepy, rural Meryton in Hampshire, England. (Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen)

 

• School on Earth. (Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card)

 

• Old lady’s attic. (Ratatouille directed by Brad Bird)

 

Question #2.1: How does the normal world demonstrate what your character cares about (and thus what’s at stake for him)?

 

Question #2.2: How does the normal world contrast the situation in which the character finds himself in the Second Act?

 

Question #3: How can you use similar or contrasting settings to frame the beginning and end of your story?

 

Examples:

• The Darlings’ house. (Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie)

 

• The Martins’ plantation. (The Patriot directed by Roland Emmerich)

 

• District 12. (The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins)

 

Reference: Structuring Your Novel, chapter 5, pages 66-74.