So, I recently moved. As of yesterday, we moved the last of my boxes to the new place and I’m sitting on my bed surrounded by boxes and half-filled shopping bags. Moves are (generally) very stressful, but I was lucky enough to have some very helpful friends in this endeavor. Regardless, the process of moving has made me think a lot about my writing and entering a new setting.
One thing I will acknowledge about myself is that I am not the strongest when it comes to writing settings. My writing gets a little clunky and awkward, I miss major details, and some people have told me a room or place feels ‘half-finished’. It’s something that usually suffers in my first drafts and I could spend an entire day trying to describe a whole room correctly without three paragraphs of exposition. Creating a vivid and clear setting before including characters is nothing short of an art form.
From a glorious castle to a simple cabin in the woods, settings can define the mood of the scene and prepare your reader (or set them off guard). Does the cabin in the woods have fresh autumn leaves and a sweet-smelling tendril of smoke coming out of the chimney? Or is it coated in pale moonlight with only a single light in one window creating a silhouette? Presenting a cabin in the woods is a good start, but adding details like that can take it from a simple setting to a mood setter. A person in a familiar space will feel more comfortable than they would in a place that’s unfamiliar (trust me). Putting your character into a new place, whether by a moving truck or a magical wardrobe, can determine the scene’s impact on the reader.
What are some of your favorite settings you’ve encountered while reading? What book or series takes you directly into the scene and makes it feel like you’re there?
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