While many of us are instantly smitten with our characters and plot ideas, the setting of a story holds just as much importance for pulling readers in. Whether you’re bringing us to a fictional world straight out of a comic book, or real-life places plucked from history, the setting provides the backdrop for your characters, influences the plot, and shapes the atmosphere.
In this article, we’re offering up a series of quick tips for writing a detailed setting that immerses readers, supports your story’s themes, and brings your book ideas to life. You’ll find the key points behind effective setting descriptions that help readers visualize the action, plus examples of how authors use setting as a bona fide character to add depth and drama in fiction novels and film.
Ready? Let’s get cracking.
Set Your Time Period
The time period—also known as the temporal setting—of your story helps set the tone, technology, social structures, and the worldview of your characters. It can affect language, customs, and even the pacing of your plot.
Are we, for example, in the 19th Century Victorian era, and therefore held within the cultural customs and status quo of the time? Or are we in modern day New York City, with its frantic hustle and bustle? The period or era you choose can have wide-ranging effects on your plot’s events and character behavior—and even your story’s themes.
Consider gender roles, class divisions, and popular beliefs. All of these will help shape your characters, their beliefs, desires and challenges—something a well-crafted setting should always do.
Whatever your choice of period, be sure to research thoroughly when developing your story, to ensure historical accuracy (if applicable). If your story is set in a totally fictional universe, such as in science fiction stories or a sweeping fantasy world like The Lord of the Rings, be sure to establish clear rules and limits for how technology or magic works.
Know Your Place
The physical location of your story can also shape characters’ experiences, attitudes, and actions. Just like with the time period, it’s vital to choose a place that matches your story’s mood, themes, and character goals—or plays off of them in interesting ways.
Think urban versus rural, for example. Will your story take place in a manic city, a small town, or a remote, laid-back village? Each will have its unique attributes with which you can engage (crowded streets, quiet spaces, isolation) as you explore your character’s life on the page.
On top of that, what kind of natural geography or landscape exists around here? Are there mountains, forests, deserts, or rivers? Natural elements, including weather patterns, most definitely influence atmosphere and can even offer up plot points or the backdrop of an inciting incident. Let’s say you have the story of a young girl forced to make a treacherous journey across multiple locations after a devastating flood hits her home village, for example. How do the wider surroundings beyond her home help make the story’s setting essential to the plot? Is it all flat land, with no help to be seen on the horizon? Or must she travel across brutal mountains, in a stark contrast to the green flats to which she’s accustomed?
We’ll talk a little more about using your story’s setting as a genuine antagonist soon, but whether it affects the story greatly or only a little, physical landscape is an important part of it all. In your planning, use world-building techniques such as drawing maps and writing out your own little guidebook of the customs and cultural references that shape your characters, which will make it much easier for you to establish a sense of place and visualize scenes in your own mind as you write.
Sensory Details: Keep Readers Oriented
For powerful writing, engage with all the senses while characters interact with the setting of a story. Our senses are, after all, what brings the world around us to life! Consider sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste, and which might fit best to support the feel of a given scene.
What can your characters see? Think landmarks, colors, objects, and even the color of the sky. Are we in a busy marketplace, a decaying mansion, or the vast expanse of an alien world?
What sounds are present? Are there street vendors shouting, the hum of machinery, or the distant calls of animals?
What scents define the place? The aroma of fresh-baked bread, wet earth, or the stench of decay?
Is the air sticky and humid, the ground rough, or the wind sharp? What textures might your characters feel?
If relevant, what flavors stand out? Is there the taste of saltwater, the bitterness of smoke, or the sweetness of fruit? Is there a stench so foul it actually seems to coat the tongue (eurgh!)?
Try to keep these elements brief but impactful. As mentioned, you don’t want to go overboard and a) overwhelm your reader, or b) drag your story’s pacing to a halt. Integrating sensory details naturally into action and dialogue is a powerful method, helping them visualize setting details without pulling the focus away from the story itself.
Also remember to keep your choice of sensory cues as unique as you can to enhance the atmosphere. If you focused on smell in the previous scene, shift to a stronger focus on sound or temperature next time; vary it up so things don’t get stale.
Get Deep with Descriptions
Descriptions anchor the reader in the world you’ve created. A well-described setting evokes emotions, sets the mood, and provides context for action and reaction. Think about how you want the reader to feel in this moment. Does your setting feel welcoming, ominous, or magical? Use literary elements such as metaphor and simile to paint this sense of place; of comfort, or tension, or despair, based on how your character is feeling.
Based on those emotions, show how the setting influences your characters’ actions. Are they intimidated by the towering city skyscrapers or comforted by the familiar feel of home? Do they snuggle up with something, appreciating the warm softness between their fingers, or do they shield their eyes from a harsh, stinging sun? Sometimes settings can represent deeper themes, also. A decaying mansion might symbolize a crumbling family legacy, or a pristine beach might represent unattainable beauty or the desire for perfection.
Avoid long, blocky paragraphs of description. Instead, sprinkle them throughout scenes for a more organic feel. After all, your main character will be used to this environment and everything in it will feel normal to them (until it doesn’t). Prioritize descriptions that are relevant to the plot or emotional arc of the character—especially those things that shake up the status quo or affect the dramatic stakes of the story.
If everything has weight, then nothing has weight. Remember that.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Over-Describing: Long, overly detailed descriptions can slow the pacing. Focus on the most significant aspects of the setting.
Inconsistent Details: Changing key features (e.g., distance between locations or architecture style) can confuse readers. Be consistent.
Lack of Integration with Plot: The setting should influence the plot. If your characters don’t interact with the setting in any meaningful way, it becomes a hollow backdrop.
Using Cliché Settings: Avoid generic or overused settings unless you bring a unique spin to them. Think beyond castles, forests, and big cities. You can do it; go a little wild!
Ignoring Sensory Details: Focusing too much on visual descriptions and neglecting other senses can make your setting feel flat.
Failing to Establish a Clear Time and Place: Without a solid sense of when and where your story is happening, readers might struggle to immerse themselves.
Underdeveloped World-building: If the setting is crucial to your story (e.g., in fantasy or sci-fi), don’t skimp on building out the rules and logic of the world.
Creating a Setting as a Character or Antagonist
A setting that acts as a character or antagonist in your story goes beyond just providing a backdrop. It actively influences the plot and characters, shaping the mood, driving conflict, and sometimes even becoming an adversary in its own right. Whether it’s an oppressive dystopian city, a haunted house, or a magical forest with a mind of its own, a setting as a character can heighten the stakes and create a more immersive narrative.
So, how do we differentiate between the two?
Setting as a Character: When a setting acts as a character, it has its own identity, mood, and agency. It’s more than just a place—it has a profound effect on the characters, pushing them toward certain choices, embodying certain emotions, or even evolving over time.
Setting as an Antagonist: A setting that functions as an antagonist actively challenges the protagonist, presents obstacles, and forces the characters to adapt or change. It may create external conflict by being dangerous, oppressive, or hostile, or it may be more subtle, manipulating events and influencing outcomes.
Tips for Making Your Setting a Character or Antagonist
1. Define the Setting’s Role
Just like a character, your setting should have traits that define it. Is it ancient and wise? Dark and oppressive? Enigmatic and unpredictable? Think about how the setting’s personality will shape the mood and actions of the characters within it.
Does the setting actively influence events? If so, how? A haunted house might actively lure people in, while a treacherous desert might slowly suffocate travelers through extreme heat.
How does the setting contribute to ongoing conflict? Is it an actual physical threat (raging storm, dangerous mountain pass) or an emotional/psychological one (a city whose power structure preys on the weaknesses of its citizens)?
2. Integrate Setting with Plot
The setting should never feel passive. It needs to interact with the characters and the plot. A setting that is simply “there” and doesn’t impact the storyline may make the world feel flat and disconnected.
Show how the setting actively challenges the protagonist. For example, a character might try to escape the aforementioned oppressive city, only to find that the city’s layout or surveillance system makes it nearly impossible to break free. This furthers the plot, but also bolsters the deceptive character of the villains in power (“Hey, you can leave any time you like!”) and their city-as-a-tool.
3. Use Sensory Description to Give It “Life”
Use sensory cues to make the setting feel alive. Not only should characters experience the setting through sight, but also through touch, smell, sound, and even taste. A setting that impacts all senses will feel more like a living entity.
For example, a forest that “breathes” might have the sounds of rustling leaves that seem to follow the characters. The air might feel oppressive and heavy with unspoken danger, or there’s always a sense that “something” is moving around just out of sight.
4. Evolve the Setting
Let the setting change and evolve over the course of the story. This makes it feel like a dynamic character. Let’s go back to the oppressive city idea: once the characters learn they can’t leave, elements of power may then rally to stop them from trying. That once-friendly police station is now, essentially, an enemy fort.
5. Make the Setting Reflect Themes and Mood
Align the setting with the themes and mood of your story. A wild forest might symbolize the chaos and wonder of nature and the unknown, or a desolate wasteland might reflect feelings of isolation or despair. The setting should reinforce the emotional core of the story.
Examples of Setting as Character or Antagonist in Popular Media
1. The Shining by Stephen King
The Overlook Hotel becomes a malevolent force, influencing Jack Torrance’s descent into madness. The hotel is more than just a backdrop—it actively manipulates the characters, driving them toward violence and chaos. King uses the isolation of the hotel and its history of violence to create an atmosphere of growing dread and paranoia, making the setting feel like an antagonist that challenges the characters’ mental stability.
2. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The arena itself, designed by the Capitol, is a physical and psychological challenge. It’s a place where survival is the ultimate goal, and it’s constantly shifting to create new obstacles for the tributes. The setting here is used as a tool to deepen the tension and heighten the stakes of the story, with its various deadly features and the Capitol’s active manipulation of it.
3. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
Wuthering Heights mirrors the tortured emotions of its inhabitants. The bleak, windswept moors and the oppressive atmosphere of the mansion reflect the passion, isolation, and cruelty of the characters. The environment is so intertwined with the characters’ emotions that it almost becomes an extension of their personalities, shaping their behavior and relationships.
4. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Mordor is not just a place; it is the embodiment of evil, decay, and corruption. It actively resists the heroes’ attempts to destroy the One Ring, with every step into its domain becoming a test of will and strength. Tolkien uses Mordor to embody the ever-present threat of Sauron, his evil will constantly spilling out into the lands beyond, and the physical and moral degradation that the characters face in their journey.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Creating a Setting as a Character or Antagonist
1. Passive Setting
Allowing the setting to be static or passive, where it doesn’t actively shape the story or challenge the characters, is a common mistake. Ensure that the setting directly influences the plot. Whether it’s through weather, geography, or supernatural forces, make sure it’s more than just scenery.
2. Over-Describing or Under-Describing the Setting
Bombarding readers with excessive details about the setting, or leaving it vague and underdeveloped, can have negative effects on your storytelling. Try to strike a balance between evocative sensory details and economy of description. The setting should feel vivid without overwhelming the reader.
3. Lack of Consistency
Inconsistent or contradictory traits in the setting can confuse readers. For example, a haunted house that suddenly becomes harmless in the middle of the plot. Ensure that the setting’s features and characteristics are consistent throughout the story. If the setting changes, show why and how it’s evolving, not just switching things up for no reason.
4. Making the Setting Too One-Dimensional
Try to avoid treating the setting like a stereotypical or flat environment (e.g., an evil forest that’s just dangerous without any deeper significance). Make the setting multidimensional. Whether it’s an ancient ruin or a modern city, explore its history, its emotional impact on the characters, and the unique features that give it its own particular life and personality.
5. Forgetting to Integrate the Setting with Character Development
Don’t focus solely on the setting’s challenges and dangers without considering how it affects the emotional or psychological development of the characters. Show us how the setting impacts their growth, their relationships, and their understanding of themselves and the world around them.
And there we have it: the setting of a story isn’t just a place—it’s an integral part of your story’s emotional landscape and conflict. It should challenge the characters in your story, influence the plot, and reflect your central themes—all things you should strive to achieve no matter the period or location.
Whether you’ll be exploring a fictional world or the real one, hopefully these tips for writing your story’s setting will serve you well. The only question is… where will your characters be heading to next?
