Setting

So because I have decided to try and be a good blogger who talks about the important things in writing. I will try to cover all the things that everyone sees as important but I will explain why I think they are important. All the parts of the story are important. I say the parts of the story are character, plot, setting, point-of-view, and theme. I know that some say conflict are but I see that something that is born from the five I have listed. I am going to try and explain why I think they are important. If I am really good I will give examples.

Because I am not picky I wanted to start with setting. I googled the definition of Setting in a story and this is what I got.
Setting, quite simply, is the story’s time and place. While setting includes simple attributes such as climate or wall décor, it can also include complex dimensions such as the historical moment the story occupies or its social context. Because particular places and times have their own personality or emotional essence (such as the stark feel of a desert or the grim, wary resolve in the United States after the September 11th attacks), setting is also one of the primary ways that a fiction writer establishes mood. Typically, short stories occur in limited locations and time frames, such as the two rooms involved in Kate Chopin’s "The Story of an Hour," whereas novels may involve many different settings in widely varying landscapes. Even in short stories, however, readers should become sensitive to subtle shifts in setting. For example, when the grieving Mrs. Mallard retires alone to her room, with "new spring life" visible out the window, this detail about the setting helps reveal a turn in the plot. Setting is often developed with narrative description, but it may also be shown with action, dialogue, or a character’s thoughts.

I have to say that I like it. I think that it short and true. Setting is very important in all writing but genre writing setting becomes more. Imagine, if you will, Poe with the fog, the crows, or the darkness coming from all around. Now he is just like so many of his peers; nothing special. But when he made setting important to the telling of his tales then we have fiction gold. Setting is something that writers and readers use to inform about the story before we even begin. By that I mean when I am in the mood for something like hard sci-fi knowing that before I pick up the book. For the writer knowing that you are writing a urban fantasy is something that should be done long before the book is in the hands of the reader. I say that with the knowledge that most writers do think about those things but not all. An sad truth is not every writer sits down and thinks about their story. Now I am not saying know every little thing about your story before you start writing. But having a good idea about where the story is happening is something that you should know. It is very useful to both of us. I may add to this later but for now I am done. If you want to talk with me about this please leave a comment. I would love to talk with others about what is important about Setting. Write you next week!