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How to Figure Out the Macro and Micro Setting of Your Novel

Lesson 5 of "How to Finally Get Started on that Novel"

Amy Shearn's avatar
Amy Shearn
Nov 27, 2024
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 Mariam Chagelishvili

Lesson 5 of 8 from “How to Finally Get Started on that Novel”

Once you’ve created these gorgeously alive characters, found your novel’s voice, and started to sculpt your plot, you don’t want to leave all these things to float in the ether. Think about how much The Great Gatsby is defined by the setting of “one the strangest communiti…

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Amy Shearn's avatar
A guest post by
Amy Shearn
Author of 5 novels, including Animal Instinct (Putnam, 2025) & Dear Edna Sloane (Red Hen Press, 2024). Essays in New York Times Modern Love, Oprah Daily, & elsewhere. Teaches writing & works 1:1 with writers.
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