Fictional Vs Real setting

Outburst

Hello, looking for some views on the benefits of using a fictional vs a real location as the setting for a story.

I've recently finished a story set around the area where I live, set around 50 years in the past. I did a fair bit of research and bought OS maps to figure out where the best place to set my story in the area would be, as the tale is dependent on terrain features such as mountains, forests and trees. I've also included fictional entries from the local paper in the protagonists diary (I'm guessing I need to contact them if I'm going to do anything with it)

A part of me is starting to wonder whether setting a horror story in a real setting is an inferior choice to creating a fictional realm within Ireland for the events to take place (this is largely what lovecraft did in his stories). My immediate reaction to fictional plots set in real places I know is generally a less than credible one (maybe this is just me) - ie "a zombie movie set in donegal" or an action movie set in Leitrim". I'm thinking about writing a second section for the story soon, so it probably best to grab the bull by the horns now and make a decision.

In short, does anyone have an opinion on the benefits of using a real/fictional setting for a story / and how it might affect the perception of readers who know the area and readers from abroad etc

Sorry for a long post!

EileenG

If you know an area well, it can work really well. People who know it will enjoy it, and you will have a real sense of place for those who don't. I've often been tempted to go to an area just because I enjoyed a story set there. The downside is, you have to get it right. No meeting "on the steps of the GPO" or you kill your credibility.

Antilles

Um, why not set your story entirely in your town and then change all the place names?

davyjose

use a real setting where possible, OP. It adds credibility to a story. Depends on the genre of course, in horro/fantasy there's already a suspension of disbelief, and it can work better. Otherwise, always go with a real setting, IMO.

If it's set 50 years ago, I would ABSOLUTELY try to use a real location. Haven't read it, but I'd imagine it would lend so much more to the "legend" so to speak.

af_thefragile

Antilles wrote: »

Um, why not set your story entirely in your town and then change all the place names?

That is a brilliant idea.
One of my stories has a very political plot and I need a good city to set it in. Now I don't know any other city as well as I know Dublin so it'ld be a little trying too hard trying to set it in somewhere like New York where I've never been or London where I've only been to a couple of times.

Neither do I want the story to end up becoming a political commentary on the state of the government of certain countries. Which is why I always kept juggling the ideas of whether to set it in a real place or a fictional place.
I liked how George Orwell used landmarks around London to set his story in the fictional Oceania and Airstrip-One much effectively to portray a reflection of the Stalinist regime.

And thus after a lot of thinking I decided to set my story in a fictional country/city as well and I'll probably use a fictionalised version of Dublin for the setting.

This was actually the first novel I started writing but then because of changes in my political thinking and philosophies, I had to stop writing and rethink the whole story. I started writing it when I was new to politics and I was developing ideas in my mind. I started out from being far left to far right to more central focused as I'm now and so my story's plot changed along with my thinking. But now I got it all figured out. Still gotta finish the other two I'm working on before I start focusing back on this one.