I'm just going to randomly grab a few memorable literary settings from my mental library — Yoknapatawpha County, Manhattan, 124 Bluestone Road. These places, as rendered by William Faulkner, Elizabeth Alexander, and Toni Morrison, are not just surfaces, smells, or ways to evoke a mood. They are settings in which stories and lives unfolded. We may see them in our mind's eyes, but we remember them because of what happened there, not because of the still shot. Beloved opens with the house itself (as haunted by the baby ghost) driving people away from it with burnt chickpeas, shattered mirrors and ghostly handprints. We know from the outset that those who remain are survivors — though not yet of what.

PROMPT: To create a muscular setting, have your character do a mental or actual walk-through of a space that has history for them, and make sure every single element that is named or described is included for a reason, not just for set dressing. This is a powerful tool for opening a story or chapter because it forces the inclusion of place, character and setting, all entwined. Rather than focussing on the visual, focus on history, recalling past incidents and telling in micro flashbacks stories that reveal new facets of your main story. Setting without story is an empty room. Fill yours with, life, even death -- but anyhow actions rather than objects.

Further Reading: "Manhattan Elegy" by Elizabeth Alexander

P. 1 of Beloved by Toni Morrison