Setting: Writing a Story With Atmosphere

When writing a story, character and plot are arguably the two most important ingredients. But setting comes a very close third. Actually, a strong setting in a novel should almost be like a character in its own right - the reader should be able to feel its heart beat.

And it is no coincidence, therefore, that the best way to construct the setting when writing a story is in exactly the same way that you would build your characters...

• When creating characters, you need to "get to know them" before writing a single word of the novel.
• And when constructing the novel's setting, exactly the same thing applies.

Writing a Story's Setting Step by Step

• The first thing is to answer the question What Is a Story Setting? It sounds stupid, I know, but if you truly want your novel to have atmosphere, you have to look way beyond the buildings and the streets.

• Next, have you ever wondered whether it is best to set your novel in a real place or a fictional one? If you have, Fictional Settings vs. Real Settings has all the answers.

• And now for the main event: Getting to Know the Setting of a Story. This article will help you to flesh out your setting on paper so that know it as well as you know your own neighborhood.

And that is it, at least for now. The next step in the process is to bring the setting to life, so that the readers can get to know your locations as well as you do. But that happens later in the Novel Writing Process, in the section on combining story elements to arrive at a Final Plan.