Setting Isn't Just Time And Place

Janet here. When I first started writing, I thought of setting as the place and timeframe of the story. To put it in a nutshell—that little tag on page one in a book giving the location and year. For my May release Courting the Doctor's Daughter the setting is Noblesville, Indiana, 1898. I tried to expand the locale until readers could picture the small town, knew the location of Adelaide’s shop or Doctor Lawrence’s office. I make the setting as unique as I can by giving readers a sense of what folks wore, how they got around and the times they lived in. Those details of the setting enrich the story and ground the reader.

But over time I realized setting can be so much more than a place in time. And I'm still learning.

Using setting to heighten emotion: I talked about using setting to increase emotion in a previous Seekerville post and wanted to expand today on other ways we can use setting. One tiny emotional detail of the setting can provide more impact to the reader than pages and pages of description. If the character hones in on a single detail, he creates a far more powerful impact for the reader than if he focused on the large picture. Just as photos taken from the air after a tornado may give an idea of the extent of the damage, but a close-up shot of a battered teddy bear on a pile of debris can be heart wrenching.

Using setting to advance the plot: Everything in a book should advance the plot. Make the setting important by making it advance and strengthen your plot and reveal character. Try to work these details in with action so the description doesn’t slow the pace. The small town setting, for example, creates both blessings and problems for characters that impact the plot and reveal character.

Using setting as a way to emphasize mood: Small details from the setting can reflect what the character is saying or feeling. By manipulating setting, say with a thunderstorm, I can emphasize the mood of a high tension scene. Or reflect the internal conflict and emotions of a character, as in these snippets from Courting the Doctor’s Daughter.

Inside the surgery, he stumbled to the window, staring at the flashing sky, his composure as jagged as the streaks of lightening brightening the night, lighting up the guilt inside him.

Mary crossed to the living room window, seeing her contorted features in the rain-streaked glass, a weeping face, or so it appeared. But she’s wept bucketsful and had no more tears.

Weather can also ratchet up the tension between characters. By describing the increasing storm, the reader feels the increasing tension. Use the harshness of the weather to emphasize the harsh conflict and emotions between characters.

Or just the opposite. The first snowfall at Christmas time can add a magical quality to a scene and either increase the sense of romance and harmony between the characters or add to the conflict when a character realizes he can never have this picture perfect world.

Using setting as an analogy: Comparisons between the setting and the character is a great way to show. Mary is struggling with self esteem issues in Courting the Doctor’s Daughter:

She hesitated, clearly torn about revealing her thoughts. He kept holding her hand, kept holding her gaze. Finally, she released a long, shuddering breath. “Deep down inside, in a place I’m not proud of, can barely admit exists, it hurts I was a throw-away baby.” Mary turned toward the river. Near its edge a bottle floated on the current. Just ahead, trapped by a submerged log, an old boot and rusty can bobbed in the water lapping against the bank. She gestured toward the litter. “Someone’s trash.”

In Courting Miss Adelaide, I used this technique when Adelaide sits across from members of the orphan selection committee to ask for a child. All the applicants for the children have been couples and the vacant seat is glaring proof of her single state.

To fill the vacant chair with something, she laid her purse on the seat, a seat that mocked her singleness.

I didn’t understand the full potential for using the setting until my critique partner, Shirley Jump told me that the setting has to act, not just be there. Setting becomes a character, interacting in some way, with your character’s thoughts and feelings.

Using setting as character: This passage from The Substitute Bride, February 2010, shows Ted and the setting interacting.

He dropped into a rocker near the potbelly stove, stretching out his legs toward the warmth of the fire. As he stared into the window at the flames, thinking how difficult childhood could be sometimes, his mind catapulted back.

Fire and brimstone. Exactly what his father preached at those revivals. Men and women rushed to the altar to lay down the load of their sins. But behind that fiery demeanor lived a liar. Even at five, Ted had known his dad pocketed the offering, later laughing at the stupidity of those he bilked. Not a preacher at all, but a charlatan who stole money to gamble.

When the gaming tables had taken his last dime, he’d put down the cards and pick up the garb of a preacher again, until he’d swindled another stake from trusting souls in another town.
The flames flickered, but Ted barely noticed the dancing oranges and yellows. He saw an endless parade of towns, filled with faces his father had betrayed, as he’d sat on the front row, throat tight with shame, and waited...fear crawling his spine, sure God would strike his father dead on the spot. But God never did.

The flames before him ebbed, but the heat remained. Much like God’s love. God didn’t kill sinners—He loved them. Even men like his father.

Even men like him.

Not only did the flames trigger memories, they interact with Ted, almost as if he held a conversation with the flames and they gave him insight into his past. Into his present. When we use these details of our setting to make the character confront his past, his deepest fears or biggest regrets, the impact is strong, raising emotion in the reader. Or so we hope.

Describe setting carefully. If you describe something, readers will expect it to be significant and be disappointed if it isn't. Don't over describe or you'll slow the pace.

To state again: Use the details of your setting to enrich your story. Setting should advance and strengthen your plot. Setting can heighten emotion, reveal character, emphasize mood and conflict. By using setting as a character to interact with your characters, you’re showing instead of telling. And you’re increasing the emotional impact for the reader.

If you're feeling brave, share examples of how you use setting in your stories to up the emotion, emphasize mood, as an analogy or even as character.

I've brought coffee and vegetable cheese omelet with a side of salsa this morning. Pull up a chair and let's talk setting.