Tone and Atmosphere

[wcc-curtis]

What is the most important part of writing with regard to setting the scene? In The Shining, the tone is sinister and the atmosphere is gloomy. A gloomy atmosphere is the result of presenting physical details in such a way as to create an emotional reaction. Do you enjoy anything more than setting the scene? Creating dialogue? Building characters?

[sandy14]

What is the most important part of writing with regard to setting the scene? In The Shining, the tone is sinister and the atmosphere is gloomy. A gloomy atmosphere is the result of presenting physical details in such a way as to create an emotional reaction. Do you enjoy anything more than setting the scene? Creating dialogue? Building characters?

Clarity.

The scene is what is going on in the background, but is should not dominate the or get in the way of the narrative. JG Ballard is a master of setting the scene with an economy of words which keeps the story moving. It is very easy to write a pretty scene, but for a reader too much detail gets in the way.

Writing is about crafting a piece that works as a whole. I will probably produce elaborate detailed scenes in the 1st draft, but the likelihood is they will be sharply edited in a later draft - as I will know where the story is going and know which bits I need to keep to inform the reader, and which bits to dump. It's the same for poetry. I overwrite it with lots of adjectives and words and then knock out the ones I don't need.

[ennison]

I love dialogue that sounds real and creates character. I like Raymond Carver's use of dialogue or R C Hutchinson's or (strangely) Dickens' or Neil Munro 's

[Eiseabhal]

Why "strangely"? I would suggest Dickens' dialogue is realistic even if he does employ it at times for caricature.