Ever read a novel where you can just paint a picture of the environment, weather, and room in your head due to how it was described? That’s the power of properly placed settings.
The setting in a novel is the unsung hero of your writing. It sets the stage for the characters and plot to unfold. A well-created setting can immerse your readers in the story and enhance their overall reading experience. The setting is the backbone of your story as it provides context, atmosphere, and depth to it, making it more relatable to your readers.
Setting influences a lot of things when you are writing your story. They include.
- Character development: This might seem unimportant, but the environment shapes personality, behavior, and motivations. An excellent setting will make the personality and growth of your character more realistic.
- Plot Progression: The location and periods have a tremendous impact on events and conflicts that happen in your story.
- Mood and atmosphere: It can create a sense of tension or foreboding.
- World-building: Fiction is what it is, not real. However, good and well-planned settings will immerse your readers in your fictional universe and they will picture it as though it is real.
- Period: This is the time in which a story takes place. For example, a novel set in the Victorian era will have distinct characteristics and norms relative to that time. You wouldn’t talk about an iPhone when your novel is set in the Victorian era.
- Geographical Location: The specific location or place where a story unfolds. Whether it is a bustling city like New York, a remote village, or a tropical island. The geographical location influences the atmosphere in the story and influences the characters’ actions. For example, you can’t say that your character who lives in a remote village went shopping at the mall. It is not realistic because a remote village typically won’t have a mall.
- Physical Location: This is scene or scenario-based. The physical location is the actual physical surroundings within a geographical location. Could be a cozy café, a haunted mansion, or an ice rink. The physical locations will contribute to the tone of your story. Also, don’t just state the physical location, describe it so your readers can picture it.
- Cultural settings: Don’t just choose a geographical location, period, or physical location without considering the social, religious, or political context. Some places and eras are known for a particular culture. For example, you can’t set a story in India and write the story based on Western culture and values.
Setting your story isn’t something you should decide on a whim. For example, if you want your book to be based in Los Angeles, that’s fine. Don’t stop at that. Research the weather conditions, the fashion culture, the behavior, the values, and the lifestyle before you start writing. Your setting is supposed to breathe life into your story, not make it unrealistic and forgettable to your readers.
