The Novelist: The Importance of Setting in Fiction Writing

Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore--Dorothy in Wizard of Oz

In my online writing classes and workshops I cover several common pitfalls of beginning writers. One common pitfall is to forget the importance of setting in story. Think of Frodo in Lord of the Rings without his beloved Shire. And what about wayward Dorothy of The Wizard of Oz without her dear home in Kansas and the contrasting Land of Oz…

Setting includes time, place and circumstance of the story. Without a place there is, in fact, no story. In the examples I gave you, place plays a major role in defining major and minor characters. Like the force in Star Wars, setting provides a landscape that binds everything into context and meaning. For author Richard Russo, it goes beyond place; he suggests that “If you’re not writing stories that occur in a specific place (my emphasis), you’re missing an opportunity to add depth and character to your writing.” He describes some of his students’ responses to his challenge, “where does the story take place?”: “it doesn’t really matter; it’s really more about the people.” The irony is that we do want to know and, oddly enough, the more specific you get, the more universal your truth becomes.

Cymatics: Exploring How Frequency Changes the Very Nature of Matter and Energy

Music can help recover damaged brain function by activating parts of the brain that are nearby—Oliver Sacks

If, indeed God moves us to express that within us which is divine, then poetry is the language of the heart and music is the language of the soul—Nina Munteanu

We are creatures of rhythm; circadian, diurnal, seasonal. Let’s face it; our environment—light especially—affects our behavior, psychologically, physiologically and even socially. For instance, mood-altering chemicals generated in the pineal gland in our brain, are partially affected by the light received from our retina. In an earlier post, entitled “the Mozart Effect: The Power of Music” I discussed how music can heal the body, strengthen the mind and unlock the creative spirit. For instance, music with a pulse of about sixty beats per minute can shift consciousness from the beta wave (ordinary consciousness at 14-20 Hz) toward the alpha range (heightened awareness at 8-13 Hz), enhancing alertness and general well-being.

Eyjafjallajokull Volcano: The Gift of Calamity

Have you ever received a gift that you didn’t at first appreciate? Perhaps you didn’t even realize that it was a gift? In fact you thought it was the opposite? When a volcanic dust plume from the Eyjafjallajokull Volcano disrupted air traffic all around the world on April 15th (by affecting the busiest destinations of Europe) no one thought to call it a gift.

The plume left millions of people stranded in various countries, going to or from Europe. The ripples of disruption were felt globally by businesses (e.g., freight delays and other losses) and individuals (e.g., from day laborers in Kenya to the Swiss grocery Migros unable to receive shipments of asparagus for its peak season in restaurants). Airlines lost billions of dollars (around $20 million a day).

From Grey to Green by Kathryn Brennar (guest post)

Building a green infrastructure is no longer a new idea. Going “green” is actually becoming quite popular. However, the ways that people go about doing it can be new and unique. City developers are beginning to incorporate some creative strategies of their own. Specifically, there has been a recent spike in the level of interest that communities have had in developing their parks and outdoor recreation areas, as well as housing and building complexes. While incorporating and maintaining them has always been an important priority, especially within densely populated cities, the latest trends show that community developmental plans are now incorporating “green” design. They are realizing that there is an opportunity to provide people with a necessary recreation area while creating a positive impact on the global environmental crisis.

Currently there are a number of projects taking place in major metropolitan areas in an effort to reverse the negative effects that humans have had on the environment. One project that is currently gaining publicity is the green rooftop. Green rooftops utilize commonly unused space atop buildings and convert them into green zones, where gardens or turf are planted. These roofs help reduce the heating and cooling costs it takes to power a building, and also create a habitat for birds and insects. Additionally, green rooftops reduce the amount of contaminated runoff water that can collect in local sewer systems and waterways. Even major companies and organizations have taken notice and are beginning to implement similar environmental strategies. The Ford motor company installed a 450,000 square foot green rooftop on their new Dearborn Truck Plant. Recently studies have been preformed comparing green rooftops to conventional asphalt or concrete roofs and results show that temperatures on the green rooftops can be as much as 32 degrees lower than conventional black roofs. This proves that green rooftops could help reduce the “urban heat island effect,” which occurs when black top buildings absorb solar energy and radiate that energy in the form of heat.

Best Aliens in Science Fiction

"Name your Choice of Best Alien in Science Fiction," was the question John DeNardo over at SF Signal posed me and several other SF authors such as Tobias S. Buckell, Louise Marley, Dean Wesley Smith, Jay Lake, to name a few.

"Aliens are a classic trope dating back to the earliest days of science fiction," John said.

In a previous post of mine entitled "Dream and Perceptions: the stuff of Science Fiction"I discussed what I felt science fiction did well: it makes commentary on humanity through our interaction with" the other ".

Have you ever done that? Looked craned backward or while driving through a familiar scene to gain a different perspective? And just felt different for a moment? Like you'd entered a different dimension and briefly glimpsed "the other "?

What is it like to meet "the other?