How Setting Influences Story
October 31, 2008 by J.C. Hewitt
Most good stories are very heavily influenced by their settings. Consider this simple story setup. A young couple has just gotten married. At the reception, the bridesmaid reveals that she and the best man had drunken fling the night before the wedding. As they head off on their honeymoon together, the bride and the groom must work through this crisis or their marriage will end before it has truly even begun.
This is a story that could happen virtually anywhere, and at almost any time in history. It could be a comedy, melodrama or tragedy. All of the elements are there for any sort of story you can imagine. The overt crisis (though not the underlying conflict) is clear and the stakes are equally clear. Consider though, the effect that setting would have on this story.
Setting #1: 2008. The wedding took place at a posh hotel in Chicago, The bride and groom now face a long plane rise to Hawaii, where they have secured a small villa right on the beach. While they are in Hawaii they are scheduled to attend a luau, an island tour and snorkeling in a private lagoon.
Setting #2: 1988. The couple were married at a Las Vegas chapel by an Elvis impersonator. The reception was held at the Circus Circus hotel buffet, which is the hotel they will be staying at, surrounded by their family and friends, for the next several days. They have tickets to see Rich Little and have booked a helicopter tour of the Las Vegas Strip.
Setting #3: 1954. Rural Virginia. The couple were married in a large church wedding with the reception at the Elk’s Lodge. For their honeymoon they are driving down to a small motel in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Their car is a ten-year old Cadillac.
Obviously these are rudimentary setting details, but I think you can get an idea that the three different settings lend themselves to dramatically different effects. A posh villa in Hawaii will influence the characters much differently than a garish casino or a small-town motel. The morals and general atmosphere of the 1950s, the 1980s and the 2000s are very different. The economics of the three settings are also dramatically different. The feeling of being surrounded by family or being isolated during a crisis has influences the characters.
The setting can either have a weak or a strong influence on the plot and the themes of a story, depending on how the writer uses it. Here are a few ideas for choosing your settings:
- Choose settings that matter to the characters
- Choose settings that can influence the action
- Choose settings that you know enough about to describe comfortably
- Choose settings that will be of interest to the readers
- Take the time to describe the settings in enough detail for the readers to have a clear idea of where the characters are
Hey Humans;
Ah, setting. Very important, very complicated. So a good thing to have an article about it! Isn’t there an old human saying which goes “write what you know”? So, no surprise, I always enjoy writing stories in a medievel fantasy milieu, with castles, fire-launching catapults, horsies, etc. Because the reader (assuming you have a reader minus yourself) is not used to your personal setting, however, you somehow have to introduce them to it in a clear and concise manner. Easier said then done, though, since what can be clear to you (for ex; Giant Mushroom Grove) may not be clear to dumb-reader (is it a grove of trees with little mushrooms??) Anyway, NaNoRiMo starts in… three hours!
Hey Humans;
Am I finally in the grips of insanity or are posts getting deleted off of here? More importantly… my posts…? Is this some sort of elf conspiracy? Do they have John entangled in some form of aelfin torture plant?… which would explain why he hasn’t posted anything recently! This is horrible. I should have known that NaNoWriMo had to stand for something much more dark than National Novel Writing Month.
You might have had one deleted by accident, I got spammed pretty heavily a couple days ago and ended up accidentally deleting a couple of regular comments. It wasn’t intentional. As for my slowness, it is a Saturday and Nanowrimo just started, so I didn’t have a new content post today.
John,
The potential differences in cultural pressures represented by your three settings/scenarios could certainly exert a dramatic effect on the direction this story might take.
If I might add a few ideas to the excellent ones you’ve mentioned in the above list, I’d say
When deciding on your settings, consider choosing one of the following:
1. Settings that symbolize the core realities of your theme by creating the appropriate mood (e.g., rain or fierce storms to represent sorrow or emotional turmoil which are critical to your story’s thematic development)
2. Settings that express irony by serving as a backdrop which dramatically deviates from at least one critical aspect of your story and thereby creates an effective counterpoint to it (e.g., an innocent person in a vile and contemptible environment–or a vile person in clean and pure surroundings)
3. Settings that, at the absolute least, keep your plot moving forward.
Thanks for an excellent post–and for letting me add a few thoughts of my own!
Jeanne
@ Jeanne Dininni;
Hey human, I really liked your extra-curricular points. Settings which “symbolize the core realities of your theme by creating the appropriate mood”… A black castle with one turret balanced upon the top of a cliff with a murky swamp below and a dwarf scientist inside–cute, how my surroundings say something about me. Anyway, are you having any succes with NaNoWriMo?
Thanks, Daggerquill Dwarf!
The setting you’ve described definitely does set a certain mood! (And it really does sound as if you’ve entered into your story!)
I’m not actually participating in NaNoWriMo. Just thought I’d join in on the discussion. How’s your NaNoWriMo story coming?
@ Jeanne
Those are some excellent observations. The setting and the story should reflect one another.
@ Jeanne Dininni;
What do you mean, “entered into my story”?? I was describing my home! Humans seem to find it hard to understand that many dwarves are just as into novel writing as their own species, and seem to find it even harder to distinguish our fiction from our lives. Your children should learn Dwarf culture in school. Anyway, thanks for asking about my NaNoWriMo story. It’s coming along…very…sloooooowwwly. I got caught up in some other pressing matters (it’s dragon hunting season) and somehow I don’t think I’m going to get it done. But I’m going to keep trying until the month is over. Keep posting–more participation in discussions is always interesting. And your posts are intelligent.
@ John:
You advice for killing dragons has proved very useful. Thanks.
@ DD
Being helpful is what I live for.
@ John;
Well well, that explains a lot of questions I had about the human race. But I’m still at a loss concerning hamburgers. Oh well, I guess other cultures will always be a little confusing, no matter how many of their blogs you read.
Thanks, John!
Daggerquill (Hope you don’t mind if I call you that)–
So sorry! What I really meant was: Your story is so reflective of your reality. Thanks for setting me straight (no pun intended). Certainly didn’t mean to make a dwarf-cultural faux pas!
Hope your dragon hunting won’t prevent you from completing your NaNoWriMo project. That would be a real shame. Best of luck with it!
Thanks for your kind words about my posted comments.
@ Jeanne Dininni;
Apology happily accepted. I’m usually not very sensitive, but it’s surprisingly hard to establish on the internet the fact of being a dwarf. If it’s face-to-face, people usually catch on pretty quick, giving my non-human appearances. But when I state my being a dwarf on the internet, the reaction is usually that… well, let’s just say that people think it a little strange.
And it’s perfectly alright for you to call me Daggerquill (that is my first name, afterall, the Dwarf part merely being added to clarify my species). Actually, perhaps you could help me with something. I noticed that somehow you’ve managed to have a picture automatically pop up with your posts. Now, does this take a special form of wizardry, or is it simple? Because the little white silhouette which appears next to my posts doesn’t do me any justice, and I’d like to replace him if I could. Any suggestions? (or from anyone else frequenting this site…?)
And thanks for your thoughtful encouragement– I’ll be trying my best to vanquish NaNoWriMo, but, as they say, “you can’t kill two dragons with only one spear”. I think the human saying has something to do with candles, but I’m not sure. Anyway, what is your writing speciality?
Daggerquill,
You can get your very own gravatar, or globally recognized avatar, by visiting the link above, registering, and uploading your photo. Many blogs are set up to recognize gravatars, so you needn’t be “anonymous” anymore!
I’m not really sure I could say I have a writing specialty, though I tend to write more non-fiction than fiction. I blog about writing and write articles on many topics, including writing, business, and self-improvement. I’ve done other types of writing as well, including a bit of short fiction and poetry. Feel free to stop by my blog and leave a comment anytime.
@ Jeanne Dininni;
Thanks for the tip! Now I just need to find a flattering photo of myself…
Well, I’ll just have to visit your blog now. Dwarves in general like reading, and I’m no exception. We also have a special spot in our hearts for self-improvement (and reality shows, too, but that’s besides the point).
Thanks again for your assistance! I’ll spread the word amognst my kind that you are no threat.
No problem, Daggerquill! Happy to help!
And thanks for the vote of confidence! It means a lot to this human!