What’s a Story Without the Setting? - Part Two

Photo Courtesy: Ronnie Bergeron

Last week’s exercises focused on establishing Place within a scene. This week, we will work on developing the relationship between Place and the character.

Setting Exercise Four
Objective: To develop the relationship between Place and character

Part 1
Place helps define character. Here’s the setting; now, who is the character?
1. A shack in the swamps of the Louisiana bayou
2. An old castle in Scotland
3. A ghetto apartment building
4. A moon station
5. A recently remodeled farmhouse

Part 2
Now choose one of the above settings and write a short scene in which the character you created for that setting interacts with his or her environment. How is the setting established? What sensory images are used? How does the setting help define the character? What sorts of interactions might the character have?

Setting Exercise Five
Objective: To show how different places affect character

A woman character whom you know relatively well is going on a blind date with a man whom she is to meet at a specific place. She has seen his picture, so she knows what he looks like.
Write a brief scene of 4-8 sentences in which these two characters meet for the first time in the following settings. Her blind date has chosen the place in which they are to meet. Be sure to include sensory descriptions. Note how each place influences the characters in specific ways, including dress, speech, emotions and reactions to each other.
1. A California fern barn
2. An amusement park
3. A bowling alley
4. A performance of the opera, Madame Butterfly

What’s a Story Without the Setting? - Part One
What’s a Story Without the Setting? - Part Three

For more helpful tips and exercises, visit www.sterlinghouse-bookstore.com and check out:
Writing Aerobics I by C. Sterling and M. Davidson

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