#writing settings
Describing Settings
Describing the setting of your story adds a level of depth to your story, but sometimes it can be difficult trying to piece together the descriptions with enough clarity to engage your audience.
A little exercise I learnt while studying - similar to the one I wrote about describing characters - is to go to Google and look up a picture of a setting you think is close to your world - it doesn’t have to be perfect, it can be an isolated or specific environment, like a boiler room or an abandoned mall, or it can be something more general like a steampunk, fantasy or apocalyptic world. There is a lot of incredible works out there - photographs and art - that will give you a visual aid for describing your world.
Copy the photo into your document of have it up on screen next to your writing and try and write as many details as you can (as sentences or dot points, it doesn’t really matter) - the colours of the world (the sky, the grass, the houses etc.), try to use words specific to the location (like bluffs, tundras, plains, barrens, plateaus, etc.). Try to focus on the smallest things becasue they can tell you the most about the world. For example, in an apocalyptic setting, a rusted red tricycle tipped on its side can speak volumes.
You might not end up using all the details you write down (unless you want a Tolkien-esque description of the world), but it helps to create a more clear image in your head and gives you something to work with.
Hopefully this helps and I wish you all the best with your writing.
- AJ
