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Blythe Gifford
Author photo by Jennifer Girard |
Today, I'm happy to share a great, informative post from Blythe Gifford, a dear friend and fellow member of Chicago-North RWA - Morgan Mandel
After many years in public relations, advertising and marketing, Blythe Gifford started writing seriously after a corporate layoff. Ten years and one layoff later, she became an overnight success when she sold her first book to the Harlequin Historical line. Since then, she has published eight romances set in England and on the Scottish Borders.
Setting: Your most important decision by Blythe Gifford
For a
number of years, I’ve been part of a blog called “Unusual Historicals.” While the authors and books can be called
“unusual” in a number of different ways, the chief way in which the books
deserve the title is because they take place in times and/or places outside the
norm for historical fiction, mystery, and romance.
While
many writers think of setting as merely the description of the place that is
the backdrop of the story, I contend that setting, (where and when the
story takes place) is perhaps the single most fundamental decision an author makes. Why?
Here are five reasons. See if you
agree.
1.
Setting
is a marketing decision. A story’s
setting determines who is likely to publish and read it. Contemporary or historical, science fiction
or urban fantasy, urban or rural, each of these opens one door and closes
another. I write historical romance,
which means that readers who “don’t like history” or “only read paranormal”
won’t pick up my book. It also means
that publishing houses that focus on certain types of stories won’t publish
mine, no matter how good it may be.
2.
Setting is a creative decision. Despite the
fact that Regency England (early 1800’s) is the single most popular period for
historical romance, I do not write Regency romance. (That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy reading
it.) The time period does not speak to
my creative imagination, so to force myself to search for a story here would
serve neither my muse nor my readers. I
accept that the decision means I may have a longer road to collecting my
readers. (See point one above.) Certain settings will draw you as an
author. Consider that part of your
voice.
3.
Setting dictates story. Is your
character at home or away from home? In
a situation s/he loves or one s/he hates?
Somewhere s/he wants to stay or from which s/he longs to escape? The setting you choose symbolizes your
character’s situation and your character’s reaction to that situation will
propel the story. While my Brunson
trilogy focused on two brothers and a sister, each of the siblings (and their
stories) had a very different relationship to the story’s setting. In RETURN OF THE BORDER WARRIOR, the youngest
son comes home for the first time in years, a place he does NOT want to
be. In CAPTIVE OF THE BORDER LORD, the
daughter leaves home to go to court, a place where she is a “fish out of
water.” TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL takes
place at home, where the oldest son has lived his whole life and where he must
come to terms with the fact that he is now the head of the family. This makes each a very different story,
although the same family is front and center throughout.
4.
Setting creates character. Here, I’m not
talking about the setting of the story, but of the backstory, the time and
place that shaped the character. Did
s/he grow up during wartime or peacetime?
In the midst of plague or prosperity?
On the Western plains where being a loner is prized or perhaps as a nobleman
surrounded by servants to cater to his whims?
Even contemporary or fantasy books must ask these questions. Conventional wisdom says that character is
largely determined by the age of ten. Be
sure you know what shaped your character’s early years. I’ve written many stories set during the
fourteenth century and I must always begin by asking what happened to my
character’s family when the Black Death rolled across the land.
5.
Setting creates reader expectations. Setting a
story in New York or Paris? Even if the
reader has never been there, s/he has seen the city depicted on the screen and
thinks s/he knows something about it. Be
aware of the connotations of your setting.
They can shortcut some of the heavy lifting of scene setting. Or, if you plan to play against type (e.g.
set a sweet love story in the gritty city), be cognizant of your task. Remember: connotations can change over time. A story set in New Orleans today automatically
means something vastly different than it did in the pre-Katrina days. And if you are writing about a futuristic,
dystopian society, your reader may expect a book targeted to young adults, even
if that is not your intention. And if
your setting is unfamiliar? Well, that
makes it hard for the reader to know what to expect!
My newest
book, THE WITCH FINDER, is now available. It's again set in an
unusual time and place: the Scottish
Borders of the mid-seventeenth century.
It takes place amidst the most deadly wave of witch hunts in Scotland’s
history, immediately after the end of the short-lived Commonwealth and the restoration
of a king to the throne of Scotland. Turmoil and uncertainty have swirled about the
country for years. But the story is set
in an isolated village near the hills, far from the urban centers. Here’s a bit more about it:
Scotland,
1661
He's a
haunted man.
Alexander
Kincaid watched his mother die, the victim, they said, of a witch's curse. So
he has dedicated his life to battling evil. But in this small, Scottish
village, he confronts a woman who challenges everything he believes. She may be
more dangerous than a witch, because she's a woman who threatens his heart.
She's a
hunted woman.
They called
her mother a witch, but she was only a woman made mad by witch hunters like
Alexander Kincaid. Having escaped to the Border hills, Margret Reid is seeking
a safe haven and a place to hide. But when the witch hunter arrives, not only
is her heart in danger.
So is her life.
Catch The Witch Under at Amazon for Kindle at
I hope
I’ve sparked some reasons for you to put setting at the top of your list as you
consider your writing. So, what is the
setting of your current work in progress?
Please leave a comment to welcome Blythe Gifford to Book Beat Babes.
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