Tips for constructing settings with words

[Crayth]

Hey guys,

I wanted to get some feedback on writing out settings.

I feel my ability to develop characters, write funny/inventive dialogue, and build conflicts aren't that bad.

My weakness is being descriptive, establishing the setting and mood that makes the rest of the piece so powerful.

Do you guys have any tips or hints for becoming a better writer in that regard?

[Luned]

Not particularly fancy or inventive, but when I know it's an important moment for a setting, I go back and read for all the senses. Not that it should read like a laundry list, but try using descriptors that engage multiple senses at once (i.e., "dank" for a sewer can allude to a musty smell plus a cool, clammy feeling). Don't underestimate senses like taste, which might not be easy to incorporate most of the time, but can add another layer. Try not to get stuck in just the visuals.

[Mordelain]

First and foremost it depends on your style, intended impact, and genre.

There's a suitable approach for everyone, and it always takes trial and error finding it.

If you give us the above, I could go into more helpful detail :D

[Morkotar]

The best way to work both "setting" and "mood" at the same time (IMHO) is through literary devices. Finding metaphors that not only flow well but give the feel you want is key. Here's a quick, not great example. First one is straight up description, second one will incorporate more of the senses, and third one will include a couple literary devices.

Morkotar walked to the front door and knocked, passing the flag pole with its flag waving in the wind along the way.

Morkotar's boots crackled over the brown lawn, the smell of dead grass reaching his nose as he passed a flagpole with flag snapping in the wind.

Morkotar's boots crackled over brown lawn, the smell of dead grass invading his nose. He brushed against the cold metal of the flagpole as he passed, hearing the flag flutter in the wind like a bird's wings.

None of these are "great writing", but hopefully you can see how the inclusion of different elements makes a difference. If I wanted to add a note of foreboding, for example, I could have compared the waving flag to a cat's tail, or the snapping flag to a wolf's jaws. The great thing about metaphors is they don't just build a better word picture, they can also help build suspense and give insight to the character's way of thinking.

[Christoph]

Properly placed small details make a huge difference. Put yourself in your character's shoes, and imagine what it would be like to exist in that environment. If it's a frozen wasteland, are his fingers and toes numb from the cold? Is the sun on the snowy earth blinding him? Don't go overboard, but try to make the reader feel what the character would be feeling, figuratively speaking.

All that said, you rarely need a tedious account of every detail in the environment. Figurative language and the right broad strokes allow the readers to do half the work and fill in the rest with their imagination.

[Max Dirks]

Don't sacrifice brevity for descriptiveness, as it will interupt the pace of your writing. Morkotar's examples certainly paint a picture, but they are also run-on sentences that detract from the pace of the thread (incidentally, it's also unclear who is the subject of the sentence).

Here's how I would change it:

"The decaying lawn beneath Morkotar's feet cracked with each step he took. At the same time, a wild wind whipped around him, causing the putrid smell of dead grass to enter his nostrils."

In one sentence, it would be:

"The decaying law beneath Morkotar's feet cracked with each step he took, while a wild wind whipped around him."

In essense, I've told the reader the grass is dead and it is windy without invoking the flag pole in different sentences. As you can see, the more I simply the sentence, the more the other stuff (references to the pole & the scent) becomes unnecessary. Of course, this would change if you were trying to make the pole or the scent the subject of the sentence, which it didn't seem like you were trying to do here.