How Setting and Characterization Intersect in the Books We Write

by MaryAnn Diorio, PhD, MFA @DrMaryAnnDiorio

Just as a brilliant diamond needs the perfect setting, so does a story need its perfect setting. 

So, what is setting? The setting of a story—also known as backdrop, or, in theatrical terms, the set—is simply where and when the plot of the story takes place. Authors often create settings from their own imaginations, but just as often, they use real settings and embellish them with original characteristics. For example, an author may choose a real New England town in which to place her story, yet she will add a restaurant that does not actually exist there.

What Setting Does

Setting contributes to the tone or atmosphere of a story. Your setting must work hand in hand with your character in the same way that a knife works with a fork. Whereas it’s difficult to cut food with only a knife or only a fork, the two together get the job done. 

The same is true of setting and character. A character is affected by the setting in which he moves. For example, a young man whose story takes place in the southern United States will experience different social, psychological, and geographical influences from a character whose story takes place in southern Italy. The first setting may be effective in moving the character toward his goals, while the second setting may not. Or, vice versa. 

An example would be a character whose goal is to build a successful international career. 

Placing that character in a big city setting might seem to be more conducive to building a successful career, compared to placing her in a rural setting where there are fewer opportunities for advancement. At the same time, placing that same character in the rural setting could significantly enhance the conflict for that character, thereby greatly enriching your story. 

When choosing a setting, taking into consideration this connection between setting and character is critically important, for the setting will affect the character’s growth arc as well as the plot of the story.

How to Choose Your Book's Setting

When choosing a setting for your story, ask yourself a few questions:

1. Where and when do I want my story to take place? Do I want to write a story set in today’s world, or a story set in a world of the past? 

2. Will I use a real location, a fictional one, or a combination of both? If both, how much will I overlap and how? Will I include real characters of that era among my own fictional ones? If so, how will I integrate them into my story to keep their stories authentic. 

3. Will I include more than one setting in my story? If so, how much of my story will take place in each one? For example, in my novel, Miracle in Milan, I included two major settings: Milan, Italy, and New York City. Before I began to write, I needed to determine whether my main character’s goal—and my story goal—required that she spend more time in Milan or in New York.

4. How much research will I need to do to ensure that my setting is authentic? If my setting is anchored in a real place, should I visit that place? Obviously, personal familiarity with a location contributes to the authenticity of the fictive dream. I lived in Italy for a year, and that experience greatly contributed to my creating a realistic setting for Miracle in Milan and for my Italian Chronicles trilogy. But we can also create authentic settings without having had firsthand experience with a setting. With today’s technology, we can use programs like Google Earth to visit a setting in a way that is the next best thing to being there in person.

Tips for Creating a Realistic Setting

Choose your setting carefully because it is the scenery against which your story will take place and your character will develop. Like real people, characters are affected by their environment. 

Just as an environment has a profound effect on one’s life, so does a setting have a profound effect on one’s characters. Much like a theatre set, the setting of your story affects the actions and movement of the characters in your story. Just as characters create memories for the reader, so do settings. 

Now it’s your turn. What tips do you have for creating powerful settings?

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How Setting and Characterization Intersect in the Books We Write, tips from @DrMaryAnnDiorio on @EdieMelson (Click to Tweet)

MaryAnn Diorio writes women's fiction from a quaint Victorian town in southern New Jersey where the neighbors still stop to chat while walking their dogs, the houses still sport wide, wrap-around porches, and the charming downtown still finds kids licking lollipops and old married couples holding hands. A Jersey girl at heart, MaryAnn is a big fan of Jersey diners, Jersey tomatoes, and the Jersey shore. You can learn more about her at maryanndiorio.com.