Setting the Setting

It is the middle of summer, and all I can think about is writing. Most specifically, trying to craft the settings in my stories. I've been obsessed with travel this year, as well as exotic places. But what is exotic?

I'm beginning to wonder what exotic means because to some it's just a few meters down the road. To others, it's a world away. Then to others, it's a completely different world, an imagined world that a writer introduces to readers through a story. Everything has to make sense and fall into place, including the cultures, politics, societies, geography, etc. What a responsibility that is!

I've traveled out of the country on several different occasions, and I have my favorite places. Right now, they're battling it out in a number of ways. I've got stories that feel they need the hometown touch, stories that demand the heat of the Caribbean, and stories that will wither if they aren't set in a world beyond what we already know. How do I choose?

I don't. I've started working on more than one story at a time. Right now one is set in a national park and the other is set in a world I've created, one that's arisen after the earth has been divided by catastrophe into several different kingdoms. Some are desperate to unite, while others simply want to take over the world. It takes a bit of juggling, jumping back and forth from a setting that can be researched to one that has no defined parameters geographically or in any other way. However, it's also heck of a lot of fun. Time to get back to it!

What kind of setting do you like? Small town? Big city? Country? Another planet? Island paradise? Please do share. And wherever you are, happy reading!