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| Budapest, Hungary |
The Setting of Your Story
I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Budapest, Hungary back in 2009 and again in 2012. I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty of this large city. The architecture, bridges, and the Danube River added to the splendor, but what impressed me the most was how simple it was to tour the city.
After a thorough and informative bus tour, I fell in love with this gorgeous setting! Its history, its architecture, its museums...all of it told a story.
So what does all this have to do with the setting of a story?
Simple: when you select a place in which to set your story, you should be able to describe it, the people who live in the setting, and also the culture. You should know the backstory of your setting, its history, quirks, and peccadilloes...even if it is a fictional fantasy setting or a modern setting.
Think of Gilmore Girls and Stars Hollow. This fictional town set in Connecticut is full of charm and quirkiness. The quaint buildings and houses, the town square, and characters to match all make Stars Hollow most memorable.
What small towns have you lived in? Why do people, especially readers, love small towns so much?
When I was first married, we moved from the dry desert southwest to the lush green forests of eastern North Carolina. This was such a culture shock for me because I was from a big city in the middle of the desert. It took me a while to get used to the small town setting I was plopped into thanks to the USMC. But, being a student of history, once I began to learn about the town I lived in )Havelock, NC) and the town I worked in (New Bern, NC), I began to fall in love with the setting of my life story. The Revolutionary and Civil War history, the quaint buildings, New Bern's lovely town square, old churches, and antiquated features drew me in.
Why does it matter what the setting of your story is? Well, think of your own life story. Reflect on all the settings of your life...where did you live when you were young and why? What about young adulthood? What was the setting of your story then? A college campus? A studio apartment? A dorm room? What about adulthood, did you live in a small town like I did or a big bustling city? The various settings of our life stories have an impact on us, no question about that.
So, the setting of the story you're writing right now must have an impact on your main character's life as well. why? Because that's how your readers will relate to your main character.
We writers make connections. You will need to connect the setting of your story to your characters, the main goal of the protagonist, as well as connect it to the conflict of the story. To do this well, reflection is needed.
Ask yourself some questions: Do you want the setting to contrast with your character? I mean, think of Gilmore Girls. These fun spirited, adventurous women lived in a small sleepy town that also seemed to want to be more than it was. And it worked, didn't it? The setting did contrast with their personalities but also blended nicely with them, too.
Or maybe you want the setting of your story to align with your character. I think of the movie Gravity where the setting of space: cold, dark, lonely, silent...seemed to match the feelings of the main character (played by Sandra Bullock) and her emotional state. We find out later that she is enduring extreme grief and pain, so the fact that she volunteered to head out to the vastness of cold, dark space makes complete sense.
What about your character? Who is she or he or maybe you MC is an animal, elf, or a robot. Be able to explain why you set your story where you did. Readers should be able to figure it out as they read, too.
In my current WIP, my character escaped the small town life to go into the setting of a war in the desert. Her mood contrasts significantly with the small town she grew up in. I have the task of providing enough character development and setting context so my readers will figure out why my main character dreads heading home after successfully reporting on the wars in the middle east for so many years.
We writers make connections. You will need to connect the setting of your story to your characters, the main goal of the protagonist, as well as connect it to the conflict of the story. To do this well, reflection is needed.
Ask yourself some questions: Do you want the setting to contrast with your character? I mean, think of Gilmore Girls. These fun spirited, adventurous women lived in a small sleepy town that also seemed to want to be more than it was. And it worked, didn't it? The setting did contrast with their personalities but also blended nicely with them, too.
Or maybe you want the setting of your story to align with your character. I think of the movie Gravity where the setting of space: cold, dark, lonely, silent...seemed to match the feelings of the main character (played by Sandra Bullock) and her emotional state. We find out later that she is enduring extreme grief and pain, so the fact that she volunteered to head out to the vastness of cold, dark space makes complete sense.
What about your character? Who is she or he or maybe you MC is an animal, elf, or a robot. Be able to explain why you set your story where you did. Readers should be able to figure it out as they read, too.
In my current WIP, my character escaped the small town life to go into the setting of a war in the desert. Her mood contrasts significantly with the small town she grew up in. I have the task of providing enough character development and setting context so my readers will figure out why my main character dreads heading home after successfully reporting on the wars in the middle east for so many years.
Connections
Think back to your favorite books or movies. Now think about the setting of those stories. How did the setting connect to the protagonist?
Harry Potter: Once lived in a cupboard under the stairs of his aunt and uncle's house. They were abusive and resentful. That situation matched his setting. The sadness of the space, the lack of warmth and ability to move went along with his feelings of being trapped with no hope. Harry tried to make the best of an awful situation. Later, he is transported to a grand magical castle with a unique history. Connection? We soon discover Harry also has a unique history as grand and magical and mysterious as Hogwarts!
Katniss Everdeen: Once lived in dark and struggling District 12 fighting to survive. Hunting for food to feed her family within the vast forest environment. Her environment could provide but also kill her. This setting matched her situation. Next, she volunteers for the Hunger Games and is transported to bright and glorious urban Capitol setting where she discovers the beauty of this city is all a façade and she must continue to fight for survival. She learns how everything is just a façade. How do the various settings of The Hunger Games books connect with our heroine? Think about it.
I used to ask my students to think about how significantly different the task of winning the tournaments would have been for Katniss had the first game been set in an urban setting rather than the forest, which she knew so well. Do you think she would have been as successful?
In Lord of the Rings, how did Mordor conflict with the lovely shady and green Shire? Think about how the Shire connected to Frodo and Sam and the other Hobbits. They were pleasant farmers, fun-loving and filled with sunshine. Mordor was dark, rocky, rough, lava-filled and barren of life. What an amazing contrast for readers to see inside their heads and then later on the big screen. Tolkien had seen the brutality of war and how it destroyed lives and the land when he served in WWI. Many believe his inspiration for the Hobbit and the LOTR was WWI. Mordor definitely resembles the stricken land after war.
Back to Stars Hollow...
What made viewers, like me, enjoy the show The Gilmore Girls so much was the quirkiness of the town and townsfolk. No one was perfect. Each person had a story and each person added to the main story line. Now think about your story. Can you say the same thing about your characters? Do they connect to your setting?
What about when the setting changes?
Good question. I often used The Great Gatsby as an example of settings when teaching this topic to my students. We would look at the descriptions of the Gatsby's mansion written by Fitzgerald. We would analyze how the details of the mansion meant something and revealed much more to the reader than just a simple narration would reveal.
But then, in the story, the settings change to help the reader picture the context of the 1920s, the contrast between the filthy rich and the struggling poor.
Again, in Harry Potter, the setting changes rather drastically so we can feel the excitement of Harry. The drastic differences between the room under the stairs and the vast magical castle give us a glimpse into how Harry's life was about to change as well.
We in the USA weren't as affected by this as those children in the UK who sometimes had to leave home and head to boarding school. To them, Hogwarts was the ultimate boarding school experience picked right from their active imaginations, yes?
Now that you have a clearer understanding of how the setting of your story matters, what adjustments need to be made to your current WIP? I know I needed to go back and add some small town quirkiness to my story. This town will be the setting of 3 books, so it matters to each story line. No pressure!
As I look back over my life and see the many settings of my life story, I can see why God had me in each place for a reason. Sometimes a season of tremendous growth. Sometimes isolation so that I could focus on Him and my need for Him. Sometimes he had me surrounded with like-minded friends who supported me through hard times. Other times I was surrounded by older women who came alongside me like older sisters. I can look back and see the purpose behind each setting.
Imagine you're interviewing your main character. Can she or he look back and see why you placed her in each setting? Can she see the purpose? Can your readers?
They should be able to. It does matter to them.
Ahhhh Budapest. Someday I'll write a story set in that magnificent city with its historical monuments and bridges that cross the romantic Danube.
Yes, the setting of your story can take people to places they can only imagine.
Writing gives you that power! Wield it well.
Blessings,
Ruth
What about you? How do you show your readers how the setting of your story is connected to your main character?