We writers generally can’t do the same
thing because we are writing “many” characters. We can’t inhabit just one or
all our characters will sound and act the same. What we can do, however, is inhabit
the setting our characters move through. Setting has a powerful influence on
character thoughts & actions. It
affects every character.
Take the woods, for example. I grew up
in the country and spent a lot of time in the forest. I’ve been there in
daytime, in fog, in mornings & evenings, at night. I’ve camped out.
Explored. I’ve been cold and shivering there, felt awe and fear. While writing the
book Cold in the Light, which was set
mostly in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, I took many long walks in the woods
at night to try and get back the feel for such wild climes. I was putting my
characters through that kind of experience and wanted to feel what they were
supposed to be feeling. I think it worked, and parts of that book made me
distinctly uncomfortable while writing them.
Anyone can experience the woods, of
course. But what if the story setting doesn’t actually exist? Under the Ember Star takes place on the
frigid desert world of Kelmer. I’ve never been. So how did I ‘inhabit’ that
environment? First, my wife and I took a
trip several years ago to Arizona & New Mexico. Lana is a photographer and
took many pictures of barren, desiccated landscapes. We toured a slot canyon
that showed the power of water in a desert setting. I spent a lot of time in
those places, soaking in the feel. I also read a bunch of books about living in
desert environments, such as Edward Abbey’s Desert
Solitaire.
Then I did lots of imagination work
related to the story. Not just on the storyline. I imagined and worked through
scenarios in my head for all kinds of settings in the book. I asked questions
like, what if I had been there a few hours before an event in the book took
place, or a few hours after? What would the temperature be? How much dust would
be in the air? Would there be bugs? Would there be any food? How would the plants look? I followed these
questions up, if needed, by Googling photos and chronicles that might help me.
A writer’s primary job is to get the
reader to ‘experience’ what the characters are experiencing. Inhabiting the
setting for a story is one way to do that.
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