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Mistakes are the portals of discovery. -James Joyce
Dear Writers,
This week, I walked my book. I was in New York City to visit family and see some shows (Ragtime AND Death of a Salesman), and I had an extra couple of hours, so I headed to the Upper West Side to look for meaningful details.
I knew the approximate neighborhood my characters lived in. But I wanted to pick out a specific house. And look at the area from their eyes. The neighborhood I had described so far was vague, a product of good memories spent in an apt on 88th street.
Setting isn’t just a zip code.
It gives us details. It shows us who our characters are. It gives us a world our characters live in. This character is a judge who grew up on the Upper East Side, who never wanted to leave that tree lined street. This character needs to walk to Zabar’s. She likes visiting neighborhood restaurants and dives. And she likes to sit at Strawberry Fields in the park. A really important scene happens near this monument.
I found my house on W 74th. The nineteenth century townhouse looked like her taste. A flowering tree grew next to the gigantic bay window, where I could imagine her drinking her morning coffee. Nice stoop—the grandest on the block. I walked up and down the block for about thirty minutes to see what the character might see. And I made a list.
(At Strawberry Fields, an old couple was holding hands. Two kids ran in circles. Four dogs behaved. One holder man sat with his eyes closed and hummed.)
Then I decided to talk to some area doormen. There is another character in my book who is very rich and lives in a penthouse, but this was strictly my imagination talking. I needed to give her a place that would represent who she was.
(If you want to know what a place is really like, ask a person like a doorman!!! They had LOTS to say!)
They were willing to play!!! I gave them my parameters, and they sent me to the Dakota, where that doorman there gave me even more details of the building and the history of some of its most famous tenants. I got a floor plan from a recent open house. I took some pictures. I walked between the two settings. I imagined them bumping into each other, even though they wouldn’t want to.
I do this for all of my novels. Being in the setting of the book gave me extra details which give my story authenticity and meaningful subtext. Especially when you are writing about a real place, you cannot get it wrong. Yes, I could do this all online, but when I get the chance to live and walk your book, do it!
Are you ready to stretch?
Where does your story take place? Today, make a map for your character. On the map, jot down where things in your story take place. Then brainstorm some memories that occurred in that place.
Was your character hurt in this place? Did they get a prize? Face humiliation? Fall in love? This will help you find the meaningful specifics that make your art come to life.
Go to the notebook and imagine a moment in your story and what more might be triggered. Use your senses to explore this moment for your character. Do you have a memory that might fortify that moment? Use it. This week, walking my book gave me a lot of things to think about.
But mostly: find those doormen, the people who watch and listen, but might feel like setting themselves. Don’t be afraid to talk. And ask for what you might not yet know about the place. If you are lucky, they will tell you what you need to add even more tension and heart to a scene.
Have a great writing week!
xo Sarah