Setting the Scene In Your
Creative Writing
By Mary Kole
Mary Kole is a former literary agent, freelance editor, writing teacher, author of Writing Irresistible Kidlit, and IP developer for major publishers, with over a decade in the publishing industry.
Setting the scene for your action is a key part of the fiction writing process, all writers know this. But it can also be tempting to go overboard with descriptions and writing imagery in order to make your story more vivid and, some believe, compelling. While setting the scene is important, it’s equally important to anchor your work in plot and character instead of relying on purple prose and figurative language. Here, I’ll explore setting the scene without overshading a good story.
The When and How of Setting the Scene
The best way to determine when you should be setting the scene in fiction is by asking yourself why you are writing about a particular location or event. Ideally, you have your plot set after having written a robust novel outline. You know how many locations you have to work with, and what they mean in terms of significance to your characters. If you can answer this question clearly, then you’ll know where to direct reader attention with descriptive prose and which settings are crucial to develop.
The first time we visit an important location, you will want to spend more time setting the scene (as long as it doesn’t interfere with the balance of action and information and pacing). You don’t have to get overly detailed, though—give readers enough so that they can visualize key elements of the setting. For example, if your characters are going on a road trip, you don’t need to provide an exact description of every town they pass through—but you might want to really describe the dusty gas station where one of them receives a significant phone call from home.
How Much Scene Setting Is Too Much?
When it comes to setting the scene, less is more—you want just enough detail that readers can see what you intend, but you also don’t want to start overwriting. A paragraph of setting the scene might be perfect. Several pages is too much. And if we revisit a place, you don’t need to describe it from the ground up all over again. If you’re curious whether your setting is coming across how you imagined it, run a scene or two by a critique partner and have them describe it back to you. If they’re able to, you’re doing your job!
If you feel like you really need to be setting the scene in great detail, consider breaking up your descriptions into smaller chunks and interspersing them throughout different scenes or chapters instead. Keep in mind that too much description—overwriting—can take away from other aspects of your story. Setting the scene should support the character arcs and plot arcs instead of overshadowing them.
Readers don't come away from stories by remembering exactly how something was described—they remember a character’s major decisions and the story climax and whether they got a satisfying ending or not. Sure, a novel setting can be interesting, especially if it’s a fantasy or science fiction project with a lot of cool worldbuilding. But these elements tend to support and enhance the narrative.
Setting the scene is an important part of any creative piece—but there's no need for you to overfill your stories with imagery and description. Focus on developing strong characters and crafting compelling narratives first and foremost, and readers will care intensely about all aspects of your story.
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