Setting and Descriptions

     This blog posting is a little late.  Our writers’ meeting was just over a week ago, but with the holiday and all, things got crazy.  What else is new?  Not much. 

     Our speaker last month was Nichole Evelina, an author who did some self-publishing and is on track to put out either her fourth or fifth book.  She had a great deal of good information about writing setting and descriptions in your work.  

Author Nichole Evelina

The following are the notes I took to the best of my ability:

Different genres—scifi/paranormal/history will have more description b/c the reader is not already familiar with the culture, customs, surroundings. 

The setting can become more like another character—examples include Hogwarts in the Harry Potter books and the mansion in Nero Wolfe.  You can reveal a little more about your local as you write or in future books if it is a series until the location is known by the reader.

Elizabeth George makes the landscape real, and therefore the land is real, which makes the story seem more real.

Tips:

--setting is there for a reason.  Why is it important to the story or the character?  Don’t take the reader out of the story by putting in too much description.

--sprinkle in description where it is natural.  The character won’t notice things they see every day unless something is moved or changed for some reason.

--keep it interactive.  A small action, like a character taps the glass to see if it is real crystal, can give the reader glimpses at the surroundings.

--Keep pace and atmosphere in mind. 

--Use all five senses.  Except in rare cases, such as in “All the Light We Cannot See” which was written as from the perspective of a blind man and has to resort to using the other senses only. 

--stay in characters POV.  Character’s thoughts and experiences will influence their descriptions.

--Do your research.  Deborah Harkness.  If real places, then travel to them if at all possible.  Touch the energy of the place.  Take pictures, dictate your impressions.  Render instead of report.  Technology Talk to locals through email.  Good maps and pictures.  Read local news.  You may find insights into the location that you wouldn’t notice normally. 

Think like an architect:

Draw or sketch a map of your character/setting.  Floor plans or whatever you need to do to keep things straight in the story.  Like a set designer.  If the door is on the right, the character can’t suddenly burst in from the left.

Think like a director:

What locations do you need?

Which locals enhance the mood of the scene?

Which advances the plot and reveals character?

Which local keeps character off balance?

Which adds contrast to what has come before and what will follow?

What is the perfect shot a camera would catch for a movie?—describe it exactly as you are “seeing” it in your mind. 

Like characters on a stage, where do the characters move?

Experience setting and scene:

--Get up and act out a scene

--Take lessons (sword fighting, etc)

--travel

--re-enact. 

Special circumstances:

--writing travel gives you an opportunity to show a sense of movement and how characters react.

--homes:  help reflect who the person living there is.

--guest—use in familiarity or contrast

--fights—think of how your characters are moving, acting, reacting, and feeling

--terrain—how does the terrain affect the fight or other character movements.

--weather—what do the conditions do to the characters, how does it affect their actions.

Let the reader know right off where you are.

--underwritten scenes pull us out of the story

--make it clear in every scene where the characters are

--a brief mention may be enough.

Research historical---Book person, travel to places in modern times—it will still give you a frame to pull back layers of time.

Look at archaeology and mythology.

Verify in two separate places.  Don’t rely on the internet for accuracy. 

Google books—then look at their findings for other resources used by researchers.

     I hope this helps when you are writing your own descriptions.  Read some of your favorite books and focus on the descriptions.  Notice how your favorite author has used these specifics and how it affects the character or has become a character in its own right.  Don’t overwhelm the reader with your details but give enough that the reader knows where the action is taking place.  And enjoy the process of creating a new world for the reader.  Happy writing!