Contemporary Settings: In the Here and “How”

By Robin Weaver

As an author whose first love is mystery/suspense, I keep scenery description to a minimum. Thus, the imagery I do include on the page has to carry a lot of impact. While the locale doesn’t have to be Rio de Janeiro exciting, any setting information must be pertinent to the plot and more than “just a little” interesting.

Unless I’m writing fantasy, I don’t typically set contemporary stories in a place I’ve never been. Why? Because when it comes to scenery, I need to “feel” the location before I can write about the place. Sure, I could easily Google any place on Earth. There are millions of pictures, videos, and detailed descriptions; all the information a writer needs. Only you can’t smell a JPEG. Nor can you can’t sense the hustle and bustle of a city by reading a street map. I can get into my character’s head without ever meeting her, but I need to actually plant my feet in the place she lives to portray the setting vividly.

Even when I set a scene in a place I’ve visited before, I like to return to the scene of the crime if possible. For example, when I decided to have my heroine experience a scary encounter on Chimney Rock in North Carolina, I took a hike—literally.  I absorb the details and incorporate the majestic views into the scene, from my character’s perspective, of course.

She hobbled outside and across the wooden walkway, heading toward the clear-span bridge leading to the chimney. The scent of pine intertwined with pure, fresh air and rushed into her lungs, displacing her wooziness. The spectacle of the mountain backlit with bright blue skies almost made her forgot she had to get in the same elevator for her return trip.

But scenery is just prose without a plot. During my visit to the mountain, I spotted a shadowy figure in the Opera Box (a ledge in the side of the mountain) that inspired another scene.  I also discovered a really cool niche—perfect for hiding the body in my next book.

Do I ever use fictional places in my contemporary stories?  Absolutely. In my holiday novellas, The Christmas Tree Wars, Full-Contact Decorating, and The Gingerbread Skirmish, the town of Merryvale does not exist—not to my knowledge anyway. Even so, it’s not entirely fictional. I incorporated parts of Concord, Massachusetts, Burlington, Vermont, and a little taste of three North Carolina towns--Concord, Asheville, and Boone--to create my fictional backdrop. 

For my non-contemporary novels, I do make up places. My fantasy novels are set on a different planet. I haven't been there. Honestly .J

Visiting Norway's Arctic Circle!

As authors, visiting the settings of our books is extremely helpful in writing those settings in a believable way. For this reason, many authors place their stories in locations with which they are already familiar – because readers from those areas will know if the author is making things up! Not only will they know, but they will call the authors out on any mistakes.

So what is an author to do if they want to write someplace in a time far away, or off the beaten path? The best answer is, obviously, to visit that location. Some of us are blessed enough to be able to do exactly that.

I write historical Norwegian characters in stories set in Norway, England, Scotland, Spain, and America. So far.

I have been to England, Scotland and Spain, and in July of 2011 I was able to spend nine days in the southern part of Norway, exploring from Oslo to Bergen, with a side trip to Arendal – my fictional Hansens’ ancestral home. I watched the sun set at 11:30pm, and rise again at 3:30am. I saw fjords, mountains, waterfalls, glaciers, and rivers. I walked the old streets of Oslo. I ate delicious and generic fish soup, made from that day’s catch.

I discovered that rivers of glacier run-off are a silt-laden opaque turquoise, something I would never have known to describe. I was told that the end of the Viking era was 1070 AD. I stood in the ancient stave churches which were converted from pagan halls to houses of Christian worship at that time. I learned that a secure sod roof requires seven layers of birch bark to keep the building dry and warm. Not six; seven.

All of these tidbits have worked their way into my books, adding authenticity to the narrative. One thing was missing, though: I had not yet experienced a Nordic winter.

This February, I did.

I took a “Northern Lights” tour into the Arctic Circle, sailing on the iconic Hurtigruten line from Tromsø over the top of Norway to Kirkenes on the Russian border. This time, the sun rose at 9:30am, and set at 2:30pm.

The arctic coast of Norway is as scattered with rock outcroppings and islands as the rest of the country – but up there, they rise from the sea treeless and covered in snow. Whenever a flat surface extended from one of these rocky mountains, hardy fishermen had established little villages. Colorful houses clustered together against a white backdrop, with the spire of a church as their anchor. The Hurtigruten ships are their connection with the rest of the world, as these working passenger ships carry mail, packages, and people from town to town.

And then, there were the lights.

When I saw the Northern Lights for the first time, I stood with my mouth open, stunned by their behavior. They move. They grow. They get brighter. They fade. When seen from the side, they have that “curtain” look to them: a ruffled bottom with shards shooting upward as they literally unfold across the sky.

When they are directly overhead, they flow and swirl, like a broad stream hitting a rock. They surge. They retreat. They are never still. Green is the most common color, but our display shifted to white, and then to the faintest red on the edges. Utterly spectacular.

Most people assumed it would be really cold, but the Gulf Stream flows along Norway’s western coast. The ocean does not freeze there, and there are no icebergs. Air temperatures were in the mid 20s – only six or seven degrees below freezing. When the winds were calm, it was bracing and refreshing.

Inland, however, the temperatures were lower, and the fjords were frozen solid – providing paths for racing snowmobiles, and ample opportunities for patient ice fishers.

I cannot begin to explain how amazing it has been for me to visit Norway these two times. The country is “real” to me now, and I have made some friends there. I will find a way to go back again someday. There is just too much more to see, too much interesting history to explore, and too much plot potential in this generally unfamiliar and unbelievably beautiful setting.

Fabulous Vacation--Not So Great Novel Setting

Amelia Island is a hidden gem of a beach, just south of the Florida-Georgia line. One of the chain of barrier islands stretching along the east coast, Amelia Island is 13 miles long and approximately 4 miles wide at its widest point. Named for Princess Amelia, daughter of George II, the island changed hands between colonial powers and has claimed French, Spanish, British, Patriot, Green Cross, Mexican, Confederate, and United States flags.

You might find a more stunning tropical beach at some posh destination, but for the price of lodging and ease of access (assuming you live in the Southeast U.S.), you can't beat this little beauty. Amelia Island is also the site of one of my best vacations ever.

Why? For starters, any beach—by its very nature—immediately conjures images of fabulous holidays. There's something about the ocean, the salty air and sound of the waves that takes your cares away and makes life somehow better. Seriously, have you ever heard anyone say, “We went to the beach and it was awful”?

No way. You may get some complaints about rain, although most of us love walking on the beach in an afternoon shower, but in general you have a head start to a great vacation if there’s a coast in your destination.

Yet this particular beach vacation had more—so much more. In addition to the advantages of sand and sea, my hubby was healthy, my almost-twenty daughter wasn’t grumpy, and the accommodations were awesome. My spouse and I spend a full day simply making a sandcastle—although when you’re married to an architectural drafter, there’s nothing simple about seaside construction.

So being a writer, what’s the first thing I did when I got home? You guessed it, set a story on the island.

But it didn’t work. I’m guessing my error was my inability to associate conflict with this particular location--I couldn't associate the location with anything bad. I think I had better luck with a different beach town in my young adult thriller, The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair. My critique partner, Linda Lovely, created an awesome, conflict-rich story set in a seaside community in her page-turner, Dear Killer, but my endeavor didn’t have the same outcome.

What do you think? Do beaches make good backdrops for novels?

 

Robin Weaver

Author of Blue Ridge Fear, Artifact of Death, & The Secret Language of Leah Sinclair

Choosing Settings in Fiction

By Shobhan Bantwal

Could your setting make or break your novel?

If the settings in fiction books could talk they would have plenty to say about themselves. They could also speak out in their own defense if an author has not researched them well or has given erroneous information. And yet, despite their inability to literally talk, settings do make a clear statement in each and every book.

Whether your story occurs here on earth or some imaginary place, setting will undoubtedly play a major role in how readers react to your story.

Why choose a unique setting?

Setting is as vital to a story as the characters and the plot. No one lives in a vacuum, not even fictional people. The characters' lives revolve around the rhythm and pulse of the town or city they reside in. In that sense, the backdrop takes on a life of its own and becomes yet another character in the story.

Editors and literary agents alike seem to agree that unusual settings are worth seeking out in the thousands of manuscripts they are inundated with year after year. A book's setting could make the difference between a sale and no-sale for a debut author.

One of the reasons my agent, the late Elaine Koster (Koster Literary Agency) signed me on back in 2005 was because she loved my debut book's (THE DOWRY BRIDE) setting: a small, fictional town in southwestern India, full of political conflict, community spirit, cultural contradictions, and natural beauty. 

Utopia or Dystopia

New authors may want everything in their books to be picture-perfect. Nonetheless, to be realistic, just like characters, a setting needs to have its imperfections exposed along with its assets. It is the author's creativity and expert treatment of the background that makes the difference between ordinary and stunning.

While it is hard to envision a dysfunctional or dismal world as a setting for a good story, many famous writers have made dystopian backgrounds work brilliantly for them. William Golding's Lord of the Flies and Aldous Huxley's Brave New World are highly successful older dystopian novels that have the set the tone for more recent authors like Terry Brooks, who published Armageddon's Children in 2007.

Building your extraordinary world

The age-old adage, "write what you know" is often the best advice in choosing a setting. However, the challenge of picking and researching an unfamiliar place may be exactly what an author needs to get those creative juices flowing.

Nevertheless, research is still the number one rule for success in terms of credibility and authenticity of settings. The characters need to fit into their environment like peas inside a pod.

Research today is so much simpler. Almost every city in the free world seems to have a website, with information on its geography, history, ecology, points of interest, demographics, and economic data.

No matter what kind of setting one chooses, it is necessary to do some homework first. Yes, it requires work, but it can pay rich dividends later.

Location involves culture

Culture is an integral part of a book's setting. The residents, the language, the cuisine, the dress, the traditions—they all come together to form the background for a riveting piece of fiction. To make a story credible, it is vital to stay true to the uniqueness of the community.

Setting is one element in fiction that can stretch as far and as wide as your imagination can take you. The sky is literally the limit, as evidenced by the popularity of sci-fi novels. You can pick almost any corner of the solar system and make it a memorable backdrop for your stories.

Does unusual setting equal success?

Literary success is never a guarantee, even if all the elements in a book are outstanding. Why? Because success is based on multiple and complex factors, only one of them being setting.

Unusual settings do not always lead to greatness either. On the other hand, the success rate in capturing the attention of an editor or agent can be high when it comes to extraordinary backdrops, something worth keeping in mind. Besides, choosing a location and making it work can be one of the most creatively fulfilling aspects of fiction writing.

You can reach me at my website: www.shobhanbantwal.com or my Facebook page.

Celebrating Romance in Jamaica

By Linda Lovely

Since this month’s blog topic is Celebrating Romance Around The World, I’d like to explain how and why I chose Jamaica as a prime setting for my romantic suspense novel, FINAL ACCOUNTING.

Given that I live in South Carolina and grew up in Iowa, setting my first novel, DEAR KILLER, in the S.C. Lowcountry, and my second, NO WAKE ZONE, in Spirit Lake/Okoboji, Iowa, made perfect sense. I had intimate knowledge of both locations—people, geography, history, culture—and could weave key details into my plots.

I’m the first to admit I don’t enjoy this type of familiarity with Jamaica. Yet, after visiting, how could I resist sending my characters here?

The island is a study in stark contrasts. Paradise and poverty. Lavish resorts and urban violence. Soaring mountains and deep, dark caves. These contrasts give an author everything she could ask for to make setting a character in the story—from fairytale beach backdrops that beg to have a couple kissing in the foreground to steep mountain roads where danger seems to lurk around every corner (even when you’re not being chased by a determined assassin).

Though similar contrasts can be found throughout the world (the U.S. included), I felt Jamaica offered my readers a number of exotic and unexpected extras. Many Jamaican tourists never step foot outside their all-inclusive, walled resorts. But my introduction offered a glimpse at this island’s true diversity.

That’s because my husband and I had expert guides. My sister, Rita, and brother-in-law, Hank, lived in Jamaica for seven years. Hank, an engineer, headed a major highway construction project, and his work took him (and any visitors) to virtually every part of the island. For instance, on one sojourn, we drove into the hinterlands in search of gravel pits. In our travels, we bought coconuts (but not the ganja) offered by roadside entrepreneurs, ate jerk chicken at stands where one hoped the fiery spices killed germs, marveled at the number of goats and machete-carrying pedestrians holding up traffic in Kingston. Of course, we also ate at five-star mountain-top restaurants, visited ritzy resorts, and went for an unforgettable evening cruise on Jamaica’s bioluminescent bay.

In FINAL ACCOUNTING, my heroine and hero visit many of these same places (sometimes because they’re being chased). But they also descend into Dragon’s Throat, a fictitious cave modeled on the Cockpit region’s real—and numerous—caves. Since I’m slightly claustrophobic and don’t like heights, I’m happy to report that I didn’t rappel into a mile-deep cavern for a first-hand experience. However, I did try to capture the reality of what my characters experienced. Thank heaven for the Internet and the wealth of research opportunities it offers authors.

My brother-in-law gave me the idea of using caves in my plot, suggesting they’d be “a great place to hide bodies.” His observation launched me on a research project back home, and it wasn’t long before I found the Jamaican Caves Organisation (JCO) and Ronald Stefan Stewart, JCO’s founder. After I viewed the JCO’s extensive library of videos capturing their exploration of dozens of different caves, I wrote a first draft of my cave scenes. Then I sent them to Stefan for review. His expertise was invaluable. He’s visited more than 250 caves and sinkholes in Jamaica and added more than 50 new ones to the nation’s Register. If there are any errors in my descriptions of the fictional Dragon’s Throat cave, caving, or the Cockpit region, rest assured they are my mistakes. If you have any interest in caving and the JCO’s important conservation initiatives, please visit the JCO website: http://www.jamaicancaves.org/main.htm.

What my research taught me is that authors don’t have to personally visit every location included in a novel—if they commit to doing the research and asking for help. Lots of gracious folks out there, like Stefan, are more than willing to help authors attempting to get the world they live in right.

Writing fiction exercises the imagination.  Taking our characters beyond our own geographic boundaries give us a chance to visit new, exciting worlds. Even if we never leave our computer screens.

Have your written about a place you’ve never visited? Have you read a book that made an unfamiliar location seem so real that you felt you’d spent time there?