Eva Pasco's Blog - Posts Tagged "setting"

An Indie author who primarily writes in the genre of Contemporary Women’s fiction with an emphasis on fabricating “lit with grit,” the setting is just as important to me as creating fully-fleshed characters.

My author signature is that of incorporating my native state of Rhode Island as it fits into the parameters of my story via historic events, geographic entities, and regional culture. I’m fond of blurring the lines of demarcation between fact and fiction.

From 'Underlying Notes' (First Printing – 2007; Second Printing – 2009) regarding Artie Dufresne, my reporter for a local news station—there’s a fine line between fact and fiction:

Though the Pulitzer Prize thus far eluded gumshoe, he deserved recognition for denting the surface of corruption in the Ocean State. In the wake of the tragic Station nightclub fire of ’03 in West Warwick, Artie turned up the heat on club owners whose establishments were not in compliance with sprinkler and fire alarm provisions of the state fire codes. He cited several landlords in violation of the lead paint law. A prominent hotel in the capital city earned free publicity after Artie exposed its infestation with bed bugs…

You get the point!

From 'An Enlightening Quiche' (2016) which features an impoverished mill, one of my protagonists—historian, Lindsay Metcalfe, straddles the line between fact and fiction:

The township of Beauchemins, located along the Blackstone River, proved ideal for the development of industrial activity. Descendants of Alphonse Beauchemins who inherited large tracts of land which included water privileges, collectively sold their parcels in 1892 to a partnership who erected a mill by Beauchemins Falls for the purpose of manufacturing travel accessories, aptly named American Voyager Luggage Co., 1893. The construction of the Blackstone Canal and the advent of rail transportation spurred productivity to such an extent the mill required additional workers. An influx of primarily French-Canadians staffed the mill and took up residence in the newly completed brick village.


*Ever since I watched 'On the Waterfront' during my adolescence, nothing short of “realism” will suffice for books I read, or those I write: lit with grit!

“You're travelling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind; a journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That's the signpost up ahead - your next stop, the Twilight Zone!"

(Rod Serling’s opening monologue prefacing each episode of ‘The Twilight Zone.’)

A writer who is committed to creating a believable fictitious world inhabited by fully-fleshed figments of my imagination, I enjoy venturing into a wondrous wilderness of my own making grounded in the reality of local setting. The setting for my novels in the genre of Contemporary is my native state of Rhode Island.

My WIP takes place in the rural “twilight zone” of Foster.

From the Prologue:

Sparsely settled with 90 persons per square mile at the time of the 2010 census, the town of Foster is a state of mind as much as it is a geographic entity for those who live here. Areas of dense woodland by the acre afford each homesteader plenty of elbow room between their nearest neighbors. Properties accessed by narrow driveways snaking homeward, and flanked by a tangle of trees on three sides, grant privacy. So much for swatting at an onslaught of flies and mosquitoes every summer. As for winters, “No school, Foster-Glocester!” This public announcement was heralded often enough by Rhode Island’s beloved radio broadcaster, Salty Brine, on WPRO AM.

The only boundaries reining in my imagination are those pertaining to basic grammar rules as they facilitate cadence and flow:

Comma common sense
Subject – verb agreement

Otherwise, I make my own decisions in constructing sentences and paragraphs along the journey inside my twilight zone where imagination runs wild.

If I were given a free ticket to ride…

Harnessing the wild imagination of a writer, I’d set my sights on Morocco. Solely because of its captivating setting in my all-time favorite film, Casablanca, where Rick’s Café is the figment of some other writer’s imagination for Sam to play “As Time Goes By”—again.

As time goes by, I’m still happily barnacled to my native state of Rhode Island, renowned for its sandy shores and picturesque Colonial-era towns.

Rhode Island is the setting for Etta’s Fishing Ground (2021) which takes place in the rural town of Foster. My current work in progress is anchored in seaside Charlestown.

Coasting along, I’ve finished drafting Chapter 38 (1619) in a scene which rides the tide on Sea Lea Avenue in Charlestown’s village of Quonochontaug (Quonnie). I’m at the puttering stage for Chapter 39 of my Contemporary work in progress.

*May each of us derive pleasure along the rides navigated by our imagination.

My sincere appreciation to you for reading this far.

Eva’s Authors Den Page: http://www.authorsden.com/evapasco

The brick:

In the same camp as those writers who leave no stone unturned in the quest to bring about realism, authenticity, and plausibility to fiction, I delved into the topic of “bricks”.

One nefarious brick out of a pile is the weighty subject in the draft of chapter 5 (finished at 1157 words) along the progression of my Contemporary.

What I gleaned from my research is in keeping with the chapter setting of Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford, Massachusetts, vis a vis the location of the now defunct Wamsutta Mills, constructed in 1847.

It had come to my attention that during the 1800s, the standard size for bricks in the United States was 9 inches long by 4.5 inches wide by 3.5 inches high. This size was widely adopted after 1840.

All well and good, but, this writer needed to know the weight of a brick that size. Lo and behold, I discovered there’s such a thing as a brick weight calculator.

Weighing in:

Brick Weight = Length x Weight x Thickness x 0.0694

I divulge the actual weight in chapter 5 to add realism, authenticity, and plausibility to the scene.

*May each of us weigh our words in laying the foundation of our stories.

My sincere appreciation to you for reading this far.

Eva’s Authors Den Page: http://www.authorsden.com/evapasco

As I make inroads drafting my Contemporary work in progress, I continue to slog the extra mile for bringing its local setting of Warren, Rhode Island to life. Besides integrating landmarks, culture, and geographical aspects, it’s important for me to “go the distance” with precision; i.e., walking a mile in my protagonist’s shoes.

Plotwise, this recently entailed finding out the number of miles between Warren and Millville, Massachusetts; Warren and Providence; Providence and Millville. I also looked up bus fares and cab fares during the Seventies.

“She’s got a ticket to ride.”

In the capacity of a writer, I finished drafting chapter 13 at 927 words. I’m making inroads along the draft of chapter 14 (114 words thus far), getting my protagonist road ready for what lies ahead along her journey.

*May each of us go the extra mile for making inroads along our creative journeys.

My sincere appreciation to you for reading this far.

Eva’s Authors Den Page: http://www.authorsden.com/evapasco