When we build the setting for a story we are answering the questions when and where – the time, the place and the circumstances. The setting is the background for the events that take place but this does not mean it is unimportant.

In fantasy stories the writers has to build the world. In historical fiction the writer has to research the time to make sure the facts in the story are correct. In real life stories the setting may be a place familiar to the writer. Even his/her own house!

The setting can impact upon the characters. It can limit what they can do. Girls could not join the army of ancient Rome. This might suggest a story where a girl pretends she is a boy so she can join the Roman legion and travel all over the known world. A boy cannot climb a large mountain in a day. This might suggest super hero powers so he can fly to the top.

Setting helps the reader visualise the story. The key to describing setting is the five senses – see, touch, hear, taste and smell. It is easy to describe what the character can see but a better description will also include some of the other five senses.

Here is the first paragraph from one of my favourite books Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire by Derek Landry. In this short paragraph we have see (the city), hear (laughter) and feel (brisk breeze, sense of height).

The church tower stood high and proud, looking over Dublin City, The night breeze was brisk and carried snatches of laughter from the street below. It was a long way down.

Choose one of the pictures below or find your own setting picture from a book or magazine.

What can you see? (Don’t forget to use adjectives)

What can you hear? (You might like to use onomatopoeia – a sound word like ‘woof’ or alliteration where words begin with the same sound – scritch-scritch-scratch

What can you smell? (You could use a simile, a description that says something is like something else, for example ‘it smells like a cake baking’

What can you feel? What can you taste?

Write a four sentence description of using at least three of the senses above.

What could you add to your description to tell the reader when? When could be the time of day, the time of year or the date? You could be direct. “It was a hot summer night” Or you could give a piece of information that provides the reader with clues. If you say “I heard an owl hoot” the reader knows it is night time.

Here is an example from one of my books Samurai Kids: Fire Lizard

Dawn peeks over the edge of the mountain. Like leftover noodles, the village curls sleepy in the base of its soup bowl valley, while the first rays of sun snoop into its hidden huts.

In this short paragraph we have see (physical scene), feel (sense of secrecy) and the time (early morning). Because this scene is in Korea, I have used images from Korean meals ‘like leftover noodles’ and ‘soup bowl valley’. While these images don’t tell us the place this give us a sense of geography –that this is probably somewhere in Asia.

And just for fun - you can make a Skulduggery Plesant avatar here or watch a You Tube for the coming film:

You tube link: http://www.google.com.au/search?sourceid=navclient&hl=en-GB&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4DAAU_en-GBAU276AU276&q=youtube+skulduggery+pleasant

Have you ever picked up a book just because the cover attracted your attention? I know I have. Lots of times. This is one of my favourites - The Eye of the Beast, the first book in the Moonshadow series by Australian author Simon Higgins. Set in feudal Japan, there's samurai, ninja and plenty of action.

Book covers are a very important factor in our reading choices. First of all, the over tells us important basic information – the title of the book, maybe a subtitle and the author’s name. Sometimes this alone is enough to help us make a decision. I know I wouldn’t hesitate to read every book that had the words Skulduggery Pleasant on the front or Derek Landy’s name. (Is anyone else a Skulduggery Pleasant fan?)

The style of the book cover is designed to catch the reader’s eye and most often this is the one feature that decides whether we pick up a book. A cover might encourage us to ask questions about the story. It might indicate the target age of the readers. It might also indicate the genre of the book. One look at the cover of Eye of the Beast and I immediately thought:- Japan, manga, sword and samurai. I couldn't tell from the cover whether it was historical or fantasy but I suspected a bit of both. The cover told me enough for me to know I wanted to read it.

Don’t forget the back cover. There you might find a ‘blurb’ – a few lines or maybe a paragraph designed to tell you just enough to hook you into reading the story. There might also be endorsements from other writers who write similar novels. On the back cover of Andy Griffiths ‘Just’ series are quizzes to determine if the reader is just disgusting, just annoying or just shocking.

Here’s a chance for you to judge a book by its front cover picture:
































What can you deduce about each of these books? Things to think about are the target readers (age, boys, girls), the genre, the story, where it is set. Let me know in comments what you can work out. Bonus points if you recognise the book. I have been very sneaky and cropped off all the titles and authors! (Hint: There is one clue in this post!)

There are awards for the best book covers. You can see the Australian Publishers Association Award winners for 2010 here. What do you think of the choices? Do you have a favourite book cover from a book you have read or seen in the library?

Here is a YouTube on how book covers are made. While the book is one for adults, it is interesting to see how the elements are carefully chosen to convey a particular message about the story.

First – a wave across cyberspace - hi Smithfield! I was sitting at my desk wondering what to write – when I thought why not start at the very beginning? Because that’s my most favourite part of a book – the very first line, then followed by the first paragraph and then the first page.

How far do you read before you decide to give up on a book? I always read at least the first page. If I get to the end of the first page and I don’t like it I force myself to read to the end of the chapter. But if I don’t like it then – I usually stop reading. Sometimes I might keep going if a friend has recommended it. Last week I was talking with Manor Lakes Specialist College about different genres and the kids were very keen on supernatural and horror stories. I don’t read a lot of horror because I get too scared but I am going to check out the first paragraphs of the recommended books and see if I might like to read them. We decided to start a page for recommended books so if you have any titles to add just let me know. And feel free to join in and comment on our genres discussion.

Recently I read a book called The Undrowned Child. And it was very slow to start. I picked it because: I liked the cover (I hadn’t read a book about mermaids for ages) and I was hooked by the word ‘undrowned’. We often hear about drowned people but never ‘undrowned’ – because that’s what we all are! So I kept wondering how close to drowned you had to become to be undrowned but not drowned. The book got better quickly when the mermaids started to talk like ship captains – with lots of salty language – because that was the only English they had heard. If you visit the website and click on the Eat button you'll hear a mermaid burp!

Here is a selection of my favourite first lines:
Valkyrie Cain hit the parapet and tumbled, unable to stop herself, and with a panicked gasp she disappeared off the edge. - Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing with Fire, Derek Landy

Morgoroth, Lord of the Mountains of Rain and Night, former Baron of Gorlan in the Kingdom of Araluen, looked out over his bleak rainswept domain and, for perhaps the thousandth time, cursed. Rangers Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan – John Flanagan

Aubrey Fitzwilliam hated being dead. It made things much harder than they needed to be. – Laws of Magic: Blaze of Glory – Michael Pryor

Here are some of the first few lines I wrote:
Why isn’t that boy dead yet? – Jaguar Warrior
‘Aye-eee-yah!’ – White Crane
Yoshi’s voice booms across the deck, through the thick gloom and above the waves pounding against the hull. “Man overboard.” – Shaolin Tiger

My all time favourite first page is from Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, this book has won heaps of awards. I liked it so much that for a long time after I read it I could recite the whole page. It’s very suspenseful and guaranteed to make you want to read on. There’s a man in the house with a knife and the only person still alive is the baby… You can see the book trailer here.




Do you have a favourite first line? Let’s see if we can find some really good first lines – maybe in the library or a book you are reading? Some people collect stamps or Pokemon cards but I collect first lines. I have a book I write them down in. Here’s your challenge - find five random books on the library shelf or somewhere else and write down the first lines from each. Post a comment with at least one of the lines in it and if I like it, I’ll add it to my collection. If it’s really good I’ll be adding the book to my To Read List.