First things firstA Lesson by Danielle Nicole We start with setting, what I consider to be my strong point and what may be one of the more important parts of writing. I'm going to be honest with you, when I started writing it was all lame and silly teenage love stories. The characters were dry and the setting dull, it was all just awful, but, I suppose we all start off a little wobbly. When I start writing something big, I'm not talking about a poem or anything that's a lot looser when it comes to structure, I'm talking about novels and stories or anything that requires a lot of detail, I normally just don't dive into the story. That would be way too much for me! Shockingly enough I do know people who are the same way... So here's what I do, and it does sound like homework, but trust me, it'll benefit you in the end. LIST OUT EVERYTHING! It sounds like it's a lot of work, and it really is, but if you're throwing yourself into something long and arduous you want to have steady footing before you start writing or you'll be thrown by challenges that come up later. I've been halfway through a novel before and had to rethink the plot a million times so that it would make more sense, trust me, you don't want to do that... The first thing I develop is setting, that's the first thing I list out because the setting impacts EVERYTHING! Seriously, it does. Think about it, your characters are impacted by the setting, the plot can change because of the setting. A lot depends on it so it's important that your setting is as believable as possible. Now your main setting, where everything important takes place, should be the most detailed. A coffee house your characters stop by once in the entire story, doesn't need to be over detailed. Think of it like this, if you're writing a story about another planet, you really have to get into detail about that planet because it's where the entire story takes place and it's something that you created in your mind. WE don't know what it looks like, but YOU do. Example: Dripping from the great yellow orb in the sky sunlight sinks into the placid waters of the lake. Around me tall pines stand in neat, tidy rows, a few daring to stray out of line into the needle sprinkled ground. A soft breeze sneaks past me, running through my hair, carrying with it the clean scent of the forest. The land was hilly and unpredictable, dropping off when you least expected it and flattening out in the oddest openings. So something like this. Get the reader into the story, make them feel like they know where the character is, like they've been there before. Soon enough the setting should feel very familiar to them, as though they've actually been there. Now, think of it in another way, your character travels to the library, or goes to the grocery store, or somewhere familiar to a lot of people and a place that they might never visit again in the rest of the story. That doesn't need to be overdone, you can be brief and maybe a bit vague. Example: Entering the coffee house I breathe deeply, it smelt like roasted coffee beans and chocolate. The small room was warm and cozy, expected, but nice all the same. Short sweet and too the point. You also need to remember that your setting should invoke the senses. You want the reader to be able to smell the air, the flowers, the food. You want them to feel the bark, the softness of the sheets, the cool smoothness of stone. You want them to see the rolling hills, you want them to hear the birds or the babel of a brook. Taste can be tied into scent, sometimes you can taste what you smell and that's as far as I would do with taste. I hope that this helps a few of you, because I know that it helps me to think of it that way. If you have any questions or anything you want me to read, send me a message! -Danielle Note: Make sure you know your setting like the back of your hand before you put it on paper! Comments
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Danielle NicoleA place somewhere out there, NYAboutI am a very artistic person. I write, I read, I paint, therefore I am. Despising grammar is what I am good at. Don't be shy, send me a message, be my friend. I promise that I don't bite. I lov.. |
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