The Write Slice: Write or Wrong

Establishing when and/or where a story takes place is necessary to any story. Certain stories don't (or can't, i.e. flash fiction) need much space to describe the setting. But some amount is necessary in order for a reader to feel grounded in the story. It is impossible for your reader to "get" your story without at least a minimal sense of where they are. For most of us, that means taking a paragraph or two to describe the scene that our characters find themselves in. However, I learned a principle from Clint Johnson that I strive to follow. He terms it "triple-duty writing," and it basically means that every word you write illuminates something about your character, plot, and setting. It's extremely difficult to do all the time, but he has a great presentation with hands-on applications to help you get a feel for how to do it. His techniques combined with other things I've learned from conferences and craft books have changed how I look at ...