Wise Use of Setting Enhances A Story

A good setting can enhance a book just as a good setting can enhance a gemstone.

Setting is a crucial element in a good story. When writing, I like the reader to know immediately where and when a story is set. It helps the reader get a handle on the story.

A good story clues you in immediately. How can you care for a character if you don't know where she is and when the story takes place.

Where and When

A story is always set in a certain place and at a certain time. A story set in Texas just won't be the same if it's set in New York or Paris.

In many books, the setting is like a character in the book. It can move the story along, create conflict for the characters, enhance the narrative in many ways -- big and small. Authors have reasons for the settings they choose, and it's more than just "writing what you know."

Some readers love historicals set in England and Scotland. Some love Texas or Southern stories. Some like the glitz of New York.

I set most of my books in Texas. The weather here is certainly conducive to using nature as a source of conflict plus we have everything from small towns to huge metropolitan areas and people from just about every state and country who have moved here.

Just about anything that can occur, happens in this state. Plus there's a certain cachet that Texas has. The state is known worldwide. When I've visited other countries and am asked where I'm from,  my answer always brings big smiles and an eagerness to talk about Texas.

Even when the TV show Dallas went off the air, that was the first thing someone in Paris mentioned.

I have truly been asked if I ride a horse to town. No kidding. Texas is "a whole other place" in the minds of those who don't live here. To those born in Texas, there's no better place to live and die. So I like to use Texas as a setting in many of my books.

Giveaway

Enter to Win This Journal

What's your favorite setting for books? What's your least favorite?

Leave your answer with your email addy written out in comments, and you'll be entered in a Giveaway to win a journal as shown here.

Why Last Christmas? Because I'm currently writing a Christmas novella for release in October so I'm in the Christmas Spirit.

Journal prize for Lower 48 winner only. If you live outside the lower 48, your prize will be an ebook copy of Last Christmas, which is set in a small Texas town.

Giveaway closes June 24, 2018. Winner chosen by random draw. No purchase necessary.

Takeaway Truth

Leave your answers in comments. I'd love to send you this beautiful journal!