In the previous section, we talked about people as characters for your story. And of course, any story also needs settings. So we're going to look at two types of settings. We're going to start with nature for idea number two. And then for idea number three, we're going to talk about cities. Right?

There's two kind of different types of settings. So let's start with our first picture of nature. So take a look. This is high up in the mountains, right, you can see snow in the mountains, some clouds in the sky, you see pine trees, which of course means it's high up in the mountains. It's pretty cold probably even in the summer. And that's why we have some logs by that cabin, which they probably need to use to, to heat the place up and little bench overlooking the mountain mountains and the lake.

So that's what we see in the like we did last time. Let's take a look at what kind of questions Can we ask? And of course, I'm asking the questions about people because we do need to have people to create a story. But we're focusing more on the setting itself. Right? So who lives in this hut?

And why do they live there? Or you can look at who found this hat. Maybe you have some people exploring the area or looking for this hat. Or you can focus not on the hat but on the lake itself. And think about what could have happened on this Cold Mountain Lake or in this Cold Mountain Lake right? You can think about the romance story, a horror story, a mystery story.

So anything you want, so what happened there, even a fairy tale. Alright, if you like this picture, if you like these questions, or you can come up with your own, go ahead and do that and try it for about 10 minutes. Here's another one. I like the mist it looks Like a perfect setting for a fairy tale. So, dark forest read lots of vegetation there, erode leading through it. We don't know where it's going and what we can find at the end of it.

It still looks pretty like a civilized type road, right? well maintained road, but we don't know how soon it will end and turn to something different. So again, let's take a look at our questions. What kind of stories is going to be? Is it an adventure, a quest, a story, a vacation? And depending on how you frame it, you're going to come up with different characters right and different things that can happen.

Will your characters come upon a crime scene at the end of the road? Will they have an unusual animal encounter? What can happen in this forest? All right. Again, if you like these questions, or you can come up with your own go ahead and write any ideas that come to mind. And then we'll take a look at a different picture.

Alright, so I decided I'm going to change the seasons and find a winter scene. This looks pretty desolate, pretty abandoned, except for this one tiny little church, literally in the middle of nowhere. And we can tell that this is it's pretty warm and that you're trying to see how the snow has melted around the church. So it's pretty warm. Everything else looks quite cold. And it looks like it's, I don't know, dawn or dusk.

Maybe nighttime is coming. Alright, so let's take a look at what kind of questions we can ask about this picture. And an obvious one, is this a story of religious awakening since it's a church, maybe it is maybe that's what your characters were striving for? Or maybe it's an accident. Maybe you have travelers who were lost in the cold and found this tiny church who is inside it or what is inside it? So I hope these questions spark imagination and you can write something about them.

This one is very different. This is, I think the only picture of nature that is a close up. And it's a close up of a sunflower. sunflowers are interesting. They're flowers, of course, but you can eat the seeds that turn their heads with the sun. And that the Stephen King use some flowers and a couple of his books, they can be quite interesting.

Maybe symbols of something and I think in in the pagan culture, a sell flowers are quite important. And also, if none of that appeals to you, think about the details that you see details are important and stories to make your readers relate to what you're writing. So take a look at the how the sun hits the sunflowers. Different colors, write different shapes and shades. You could describe that as well. And here's some questions.

The think about is this a story of a summer romance, possibly, or a murder in this field of sunflowers? Or an alien invasion? Or maybe it's some kind of a childhood memory that you character or characters are discussing and related to whatever is happening in the present. Right. I think this is the last one. We have another Lake, but it doesn't look as happy in the mountains.

We have a couple of boats. Nice clear water. pretty clear day, right? summertime. So let's see what questions we can ask. Obvious one who is exploring the wilderness, what will they find?

What will surprise them? readers like surprises. That's what makes stories interesting. So that's why I asked that question. And what will they learn about themself selves and each other stories even though we're talking about settings right now, stories are about people and what happens to them. And that's why I put this last question in.

They could be finding something in nature, but really, they shouldn't be finding something about themselves. Right. So that's I asked that question. All right, take a few minutes. Go ahead and read about it. And then we'll look at idea number three.