Maintaining Your Setting

I read a review of The Shifter recently that had a good observation in it. The reviewer remarked that they liked the tropical setting I set up in the beginning of the story, but that they felt is faded as the novel went on and they would have liked to have seen that setting continue. These kinds of comments are great no matter where they come from, because this is a simple thing to fix that can make a book better.

Description is my least favorite things to write. I don't like heavy description in other books (I skim it a lot) and I avoid it in mine. My crit groups frequently ask me to add more because they can't get a solid sense of place yet. My early drafts are always setting light.

In my mind, I set up the world and the tropical setting right away and figured the reader would just remember. I'm sure there are smaller details all thorough the book to reinforce the setting, but I've no doubts that I didn't do enough to make this reviewer happy. (and for the record, they liked the book overall, this was just a minor thing). But I could have easily added a few more lines here and there to keep my world fleshed out to the end. You can be sure that for Shifter 3, I'll be paying attention to this.

As you write your novels and flesh out your worlds, no matter if they're modern day New York or the village of Hineta, you might think about your setting more.

Do you continue to develop your world to the end, or does it fade out?
It can be hard to keep a setting going, because once you've used the perfect details to show it, you can't just keep using those details or it'll feel repetitious. But the world is a big place, so there are probably other details that can reinforce your world and setting and still reveal something new about the place. This is especially true in science fiction or fantasy where the world is so much of the draw.

Do you spend too much time on the setting?
Describing every little detail can get tedious, especially if it doesn't tell the reader anything new. Are you treating every scene as if the reader had never seen it before, or building off of what you've already done?

Does the POV character's view change, so that they see the same world in a new way?
There are opportunities here to set the scene in a new way. People's opinions of a place change as they change or learn new things. What seemed like an intimidating and stand offish village might become a safe haven with people who watch out for each other once you get to know them.

Getting lost in a book in one of my favorites things, and when the world is real and wonderful I enjoy it even more. I know I'm going to make sure I keep up my end from now on.