'The Promise' in Hellbound Hearts, set in Clive Barker's Hellraiser world. The story is set in a cemetery in a crypt beside which I used to gather each summer with a group of local goths for picnics. The story combines cemeteries and goths and that works for me.
What is a setting from a published fiction story by another author you would compare this setting to and why are they similar?
In the vampire sub-genre, there are many stories which are either set in a cemetery, or partially set there. Anne Rice did that effectively in scenes in her novels, for instance, Interview With the Vampire. To my knowledge, no one has written about this particular cemetery before. It is Cemetiere des Notre Dame des Neiges in Montreal.
How would you describe the way you introduced this setting to readers of your story?
Te setting comes in later. Initially, through the narrator's eyes, the story conveys relationships twenty years ago and how the narrator is compelled to return with this group to where they met and where unusual things happened.
How would you describe the integration of characters and setting in this story?
Because goths are the modern Victorians (who used to picnic in cemeteries every Sunday), the characters and setting blend nicely and, I hope, seem realistic to the reader.
How would you describe the interaction of story and setting in this story?
The setting is crucial for this story because the pivotal moments in the past and present take place inside the crypt.
How much research did you do for the setting of this story, and what did that involve?
My 'research' consisted of picnicking beside this crypt for several summers. I'd never been inside the crypt, of course, so I imagined that. I rewatched the film Hellraiser to refresh my memory of this world.
To what extent would you describe the setting of this story typical or atypical of the settings in your fiction stories?
I've written stories and novels before that take place in cemeteries, but not this particular one. But I've also written much more that is not set in a cemetery.
How do you usually decide on or develop a setting for your fiction stories?
I try to offer a good flavor of a setting without going into too much detail. If the setting is unusual, meaning, a place most people haven't seen or been to, then it requires more attention in the story or novel and I treat it with the same sense of development as I would a character. That is especially true for fabricated setting, or, say, settings on other worlds, or in the mind.
To what extent do the settings of novels you read have an impact on why you read them, and why?
I wouldn't say I read novels and short stories because of the setting. But I'm always happy to find an exotic setting, so that there's something new in the story for me as a reader.
Author website: http://www.nancykilpatrick.com
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