From the moment I tackled my first novel, when I chose a setting for my books, I chose to use real places. There were numerous reasons, I suppose, even if I was not fully aware of them. Many experts say that it is easier to use actual locations since the author is spared the effort of creating an alternate reality. I don’t think I thought about that at all. Besides, that theory overlooks the meticulous research required to properly capture the setting – its mood, the little details and its value to the story.
If I wasn’t looking to save myself some work, why did I do it? Even now, with a flick of my pen, I can change a real location into a fictional one. I could even take advantage of a shortcut by using the first as a model for the second. Romance novels are not limited by setting, after all. My characters can feel that sizzle ignite between them just as easily in Minnesota as in Illinois. Or can they?
My Choice of Settings – My Favorite Chicago Spots
Perhaps a fictional setting is easier. Perhaps the setting can be marginalized compared to character and plot. But as an author, when I sat down to create “Bedazzled”, I knew that setting would be crucial to defining my characters and showing the initial gulf between them. Keeli is a farm girl who worries about the money to pay for the parking garage. Wyatt could buy the parking garage and most of the real estate surrounding it. I would use the settings to highlight these differences.
Also, I was penning a novel of two love affairs. First, I shared the fictional story between Keeli and Wyatt, the obvious love affair that attracted romance readers to my work. The chemistry between them is allowed to heat up week after week, attending art fairs that provide a backdrop for romance full of smells, tastes and sounds that readers anywhere could relate to, but that were uniquely Chicago.
Which brings me to the second love affair. Just as the writers of Sex and the City created a series sharing their love of New York City using iconic and unique locations, I felt compelled to share my own love affair with Chicago through its iconic museums, parks and neighborhoods. I have been having a love affair with the Windy City since I returned here in 2010. I use my novels to share that love with readers.
Am I Crazy? Chicago? Really?
Bad weather? Sure Chicago has plenty of it. Traffic? We rank in the top ten worst traffic cities every year. The crowds, the noise, the problems of every big city in America and beyond – this city has them all.
But when a tourist needs directions in Chicago, five people leap to be helpful. Show me that in New York. When you want outstanding cuisine, it’s hard to choose from all the options. Cheap eats? Same problem. I know, because I struggle to make these choices for myself and for my characters. Ask anyone who has eaten at French Laundry in California’s wine country to compare it to Next, Grant Achatz’s masterpiece in Chicago’s West Loop. Ask the people who try to have Superdawg shipped to them in Arizona (I’ve tried that too when I was in North Carolina and desperate for a great hot dog) if they think there is something special about Chicago.
Ok, last month when I tried to walk down Michigan Avenue on my way to LookingGlass Theater (in the historic Water Tower), I was railing against the tourists clogging the sidewalks, moving at the speed of cold molasses, but man, the play was fantastic – worth every moment shuffling through that crowd. Did I mention the crowds were busy enjoying the millions of Christmas lights that make the Magnificent Mile a sight to experience at least once in your life?
When I was writing Bedazzled, I was inspired by real people and real places. The street fairs that shut down streets in summer draw crowds from well beyond Illinois’s borders. Artists from both coasts and everywhere in between come to Chicago selling their wares to appreciative Chicago attendees.
A friend and I braved a horrible cold, rainy day to explore a fair, inspiration that became a scene. I watched them set up for an elegant wedding as I left the world-class Art Institute of Chicago and knew that a party in a future story would use that backdrop. There is a rich bounty of sunny parks and romantic walks along the shores of Lake Michigan. Why create something when my backyard is brimming with inspiration?
And the neighborhoods. We are famous for them here. As you walk each block, you can shift from ethnicity to ethnicity with an authenticity unlike any other place. Want Polish food to rival Poland? We have it, and native dances too. Need a great Indian meal? Try any of the places on Devon Avenue opened by people who left Delhi to make their home here. There are festivals honoring every heritage, each brimming with tradition and culture.
Then there’s the music…
I imagine that Nashville claims music for itself, or even New Orleans, but their music – while fabulous – is narrow in scope compared to the City of Big Shoulders. Chicago has a world class opera company, the world-renowned Chicago Symphony Orchestra, free concerts in the park every week of summer and venues indoor and out that are unrivaled.
Do I sound like a travel-log, a member of the Chamber of Commerce? I promise I am neither. But what a setting for falling in love this is. Chicago is the home of the Blues. We keep the promise of jazz alive every day. Aficionados come here to perform and to partake. And while I cannot play a note, I sure can enjoy the efforts of brilliant musicians. Which is why I set Our Love is Here to Stay in The Green Mill. (www.greenmilljazzclub.com)
Trust me. There was no fictional location I could have created that would have been more evocative, captured the right mood, or done the job better for this story. As legendary today as it was in the 1950’s, The Green Mill was as much a part of the novella as Matthew and Patty.
Just this week, the Chicago Tribune paid tribute to the legendary club as it does regularly. “The crowd – young, old, couples, singles and adults of all genders listened transfixed. As someone who dines out constantly, I could barely believe almost nobody stared down at their phones”“ wrote Louisa Chu.
Lovingly restored in 1986, this has the feel of a 1950’s cocktail lounge and for that alone it deserves to be experienced. But when you add the history, the crowd and the music – oh that music! – I simply had no choice. No fictional location that would serve my story. It had to be The Green Mill.
What book have you read where the real setting was critical to its success? Share your thoughts in the comments below…
What to read next?
The hottest romance of 2017 seemed to be E.L James’ Fifty Shades trilogy. With the third movie set to release this Valentine’s Day, I imagine the books will continue to be topping the charts. If you’re like me, you read these books years ago. So what to read now? Check out this article. I have read the Maya Banks series they recommend and can’t wait to sink my teeth into the others.
“8 Series to Start After You Finish the Fifty Shades Trilogy”
https://media.bookbub.com/blog/2015/04/17/books-like-50-shades-of-grey
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