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Build Better Settings: How to use setting to show character arc in your fiction

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Our mission with this book is to accomplish just one to change the way you view (and use) setting as a tool in your storytelling.

Many authors create flat, one-dimensional settings that fail to engage readers, or else they bury the reader under details that don’t add depth and meaning to the story they’re trying to tell. Some create worlds that are beautifully fleshed out but aren’t anchored to the characters or aren’t an integral part of the plot.

You’re not going to be one of those authors.

Build Better Settings will take you on a journey that If you’re ready to forever change how you view and use setting in your writing, click that buy button now and take the next step in your storyteller’s journey.

Why we’re the authors ready to help you level up your writing
With dozens of published books between us, we’ve sat right where you’re sitting now with your rear end firmly planted in your writing chair, and a desire to level up your storytelling. We’ve sweated over how to make our characters come to life and how to weave stories that keep readers turning pages. In addition to our own experience as authors, we’re co-founders and mentors in the Creative Academy for Writers, an online community with members writing and publishing worldwide. As an added bonus (we like to think), both Crystal and Eileen have backgrounds in counselling and psychology.
This is the seventh Creative Academy Guide for Writers. Be sure to check out the rest of the titles in this series.
1. Scrappy Rough Draft by Donna Barker
2. Build Better Characters by Eileen Cook
3. Strategic Series Author by Crystal Hunt
4. Create Story Conflict by Eileen Cook
5. Full Time Author by Eileen Cook and Crystal Hunt
6. Create With Co-Authors by Donna Barker, Crystal Hunt and Eileen Cook
7. Build Better Settings by Eileen Cook and Crystal Hunt

160 pages, Paperback

Published February 4, 2023

17 people are currently reading
27 people want to read

About the author

Eileen Cook

40 books994 followers
Eileen Cook spent most of her teen years wishing she were someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for a writer.

You can read more about Eileen, her books, and the things that strike her as funny at www.eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her two dogs and no longer wishes to be anyone or anywhere else.

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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Profile Image for Michele Amitrani.
Author 59 books157 followers
February 15, 2023
Build Better Settings is the author’s new best friend.

Eileen and Crystal have written a truly remarkable piece of work that focuses on an often overlooked element in storytelling. Build Better Settings reminds us that, yes; characters and plot are important elements in any story, but it’s through a vibrant, three-dimensional setting that writers can truly make their novel shine.

Packed with practical tips on how to build a believable world from the ground up, this book is a must-have tool in any author’s arsenal.
Profile Image for S.S. Scott | Romance Author and Fiction Story Coach.
501 reviews2 followers
November 6, 2024
Definitely an information-packed book and perfectly timed given I'm starting a professional development course on world-building and settings in the less than 12 hours. Cook and Hunt partner up in yet another book from their Creative Academy Guides series, this time to teach authors (some of) the fine details of using setting as more than just a setting. Even for plot-centered stories, every piece of said story is, or should be, directed toward building connections between the reader and the protagonist. This book shows you yet another way to do that.
Profile Image for Michelle Duncan.
539 reviews10 followers
May 25, 2023
This book is going to be a game changer for me. I am working on a first novel and to say it’s been a struggle would be an understatement.

Build Better Settings brought me so much clarity and ah-ha moments for me that I know I will be able to finish this project. It is an arsenal of important must have help and guidance moments for every author.

I can’t recommend it enough. If you are a writer, run out and get this book right now!
Profile Image for Michelle Cornish.
Author 38 books105 followers
April 10, 2023
Excellent resource for fiction writers!

Within these pages are many awesome tips for improving your story's setting, but what I love most is how the authors demonstrated linking the setting to character arcs and major plot points. So good!!
Profile Image for Emily.
91 reviews
September 2, 2024
A wonderful guide that made me consider how setting relates to my character in new ways. Quick and easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews

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