Set the Stage: Using Setting to Add Intrigue and Suspense

Time and place should reflect the culture, language, habits, standards, values, shared beliefs, customs, food, mores, pace of life, and so on. From cozy mysteries (typically a small town with a sweet and decent feel) to noir literary novels (dark and gritty, with a veneer of danger), each genre (and sub-genre) comes with a set of reader expectations. In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to identify the correct setting or settings, how to convert setting into atmosphere, and how to use setting as a subplot, metaphor, or theme to add even more richness and complexity to your stories. 

Difficulty level:

Speaker(s)

• Jane K. Cleland

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