Hope everybody had a great holiday and New Year celebration. I missed the blogosphere while I was gone!
I also hope y’all got home safely, if you were traveling. There has been bizarre weather over much of the break here in the States. Tornadoes, blizzards, earthquakes, massive amounts of rain…it’s been a real mess.
It actually snowed on Christmas Day—the first time this had happened in North Carolina in any measurable amount since 1947.
We do usually get snow in Matthews, but it’s in February, which is our coldest month of the year.
Snow in the South is unusual enough that we don’t have a lot of snow plowing equipment here. And the snow melts during the day—and freezes at night as ice. It’s beautiful here when it snows…but treacherous.
It made me think of all the unusual weather in books that I’ve read. The weather in the books stands out because it was so striking to the characters in the book or because it made a difference in the plot. As a reader, it stood out to me, too.
The heat in New York while the group is at the Plaza Hotel in The Great Gatsby. The Tempest and the storm that Lear suffers through in King Lear. The Grapes of Wrath. Just about anything in Dickens. The Wizard of Oz. Tennessee Williams’ play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Depending on how it’s treated, weather can be an important element in the book. It can create stress or discomfort for the characters, or causes them to act out of character. Murder mysteries frequently use weather to cut the characters off from the rest of the world (and law enforcement) and isolate potential victims with a killer.
Weather can be overdone, of course, too. If there’s a big storm during a character’s moment of personal crisis, I’m probably going to roll my eyes a little bit.
What seems to work best in books is either for weather to either add a little background ambience for a scene or else for the weather to take more of a center stage role—times when the weather is something really unusual. Something that the characters will remember as striking weather, even years later. Something the reader will remember as striking weather.
As a reader, can you remember times the weather really set the mood in a book? Do you use weather in your own writing, and how?
Missed you, Elizabeth! Good to have you back!
Weather is playing a big role in my novel now and will actually bring about the final turning point. Plus, I’m just obsessed with rain. ;)
I know that weather affects my mood, what I do daily and how I go about my day. Characters need the same backdrop.
Rain can be mysterious AND romantic. Snow can be treacherous when characters are trying to get somewhere or if they are held captive by it.
Welcome back, Elizabeth. Missed you!
T
Welcome back, Elizabeth! That’s a lovely winter ‘photo, too! You’re absolutely right about the weather in books, too. It does in Ann Cleeves’ Shetland Quartet, in Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None and lots of other books, too. When I write, I use weather more as a background ambiance than as a defining factor in the story. I do refer to it a lot, though, so that people get a sense of the scene. Well, so far. I definitely think it’s an interesting idea to make it a factor and I probably will at some point. It can be like another character in a book.
Hi Elizabeth .. welcome back .. I remember our 62/63 winter here in England – a real humdinger of a cold time .. worse than now. But I can describe and remember the sparkling snow, the glistening stalactites, the twinkling Christmas lights on the tree etc etc So it still plays a picture in my head ..
The book Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow – is an amazing thriller set in Denmark and Greenland, while exploring the Inuit peoples too with incredible descriptions for snow, ice, crystals etc .. well worth a read!
Have a great year ahead .. Happy New Year – Hilary
Snow is the white gold. Skiers love it >:)
Cold As Heaven
While I don’t like dwelling on the weather, it’s definitely part of the setting. Anyone who writes about central Florida and doesn’t show the characters dealing with the heat and humidity … well, they’ve lost credibility with me.
Now that I’m in Colorado, the ‘new’ weather is fascinating, and it’s darn sure showing up in my WIPs.
Terry
Terry’s Place
Romance with a Twist–of Mystery
You made a good point about being careful about how we use weather in our stories. If it is forced or just slapped in a scene without a real connection to the story or the character, it doesn’t work. I hate it when a storm suddenly blows in when the heroine is in a tough situation in some suspense novels, and even in some movies. How convenient. LOL
Since my series is based in the South, you know there’s some serious humidy mentioned! (And when the series traveled to NM, desert heat took its place.)
Our snow didn’t start until the middle of the night the day after Christmas, so we just missed a white Christmas. Although one year we had an ice storm, so it was sorta white…
I know I could use our drive on the 26th in a book. Blizzard. We drove through ice. I (crazy enough) had to keep rolling down the window and swinging my body out to knock the ice off the windshield and wipers with spit of wind and snow coming at me. Saw too many accidents. I agree, wild weather!
~ Wendy
I’ve used weather to inconvenience characters; there’s nothing like a sudden downpour to force them to go to somewhere they normally wouldn’t.
I’m glad you’re back, Elizabeth!
Not much weather in space, but since the sequel to my book takes place on a planet, it’s figured into the story.
Mallory–So the weather is almost a character in your book? I love books like that. I think we’re all obsessed over the weather..I know I tune into the forecast every day during the local news. And I check it on my phone, too!
Hilary–It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Even though it does create a lot of problems for us.
I haven’t read the book “Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow”, but it sounds like an amazing thriller. Thanks for the recommendation!
Cold As Heaven–We like snow here in the South because we know it won’t stick around for long enough to create any shoveling for us. :)
Diane–Oh, gosh, the humidity. That’s usually what figures into my books. The air gets so oppressive that you can’t breathe! Ice on Christmas…definitely more likely than snow, isn’t it?
Teresa–Isn’t it funny what a huge effect weather has on our own personal mood? It’s that way for me, too. I love rain, but if it rains TOO many days in a row, then I’m definitely more apt to have the blues. And the same thing happens to characters, too.
Missed you, too!
Margot–The picture was my backyard. :) Can’t believe that we had snow in Dec! I love mysteries where the weather strands suspects and victims together–I think I’m going to have to try my hand at one, soon.
Wendy–Sounds like a nightmare! I’d have run off the road, for sure. Glad you made it safely!
Alex–I think it would be fun to invent weather for a totally different environment. I’m envious!
Great post, Elizabeth. I do notice the weather in books I’m reading, but admit I overlook it in my own writing.
I love weather in books when it’s subtle and doesn’t overwhelm.
I didn’t actually notice I used weather in my own work until someone pointed out to me that the rainy day was accentuating Genna’s heartbreak.
l love thinking about this topic! In my most recent wip – True – the kind of weather the two main places have are symbolic of the way the protagonist feels in them. One is Nova Scotia – misty moisty with lots of ease and love about but perhaps a bit unclear and the other is South-western Alberta – dry and clear and straightforward.
I loved the Grapes of Wrath where the dry heat during the depression era had a real impact for me. Also, loved reading Rebecca where the rain made the mood sombre.
Did you hear about the thousands of birds that just fell out of the sky and fish that died in Arkansas?
That’s scary.
CD
Helen–It’s easy to add, which makes it nice. It could even go in during a final draft. :)
Anne–That was subtle enough to surprise even the writer! I like that. Sometimes we write so seamlessly that we don’t even think about it.
Terry–It’s hard to even *think* when it gets really hot. No, can’t really ignore FL weather. And I think anyone reading a book set in Colorado is probably expecting some weather references, too.
Jan–I love that you’ve tied weather into your setting and given the towns an identity for your reader to recognize!
Clarissa–“Rebecca”–great example! Loved that book.
What is up with the birds!? Starting to sound like something out of Hitchcock.
I use weather to contrast Boston and Southern California, my two settings. And a really good rainstorm puts me in the mood to write. Thunder and lightening too. The words fly off my fingertips onto the keyboard.
I try to remember mentioning the weather now and then, but one thing that has always puzzled me is all those British crime novels where they have sweltering hot summers. They must all be writing about the same few days because whenever we have been there it has been cold and/or wet! (I know English summers have changed lately just like in Scandinavia, but I am talking about novels from the 70s and 80s.)
Welcome back! I love it when weather is used really well in a novel to help set the mood and reflect the main character. I am using it a bit in the novel I’m writing now but I try to keep it to a minimum so I don’t over do it. Dean Koontz is particularly good at this!
One of my favorite “duh” moments happened years ago when I had just finished writing this beautiful street scene with trees creating a leafy archway, etc. and remembered I’d set the story in New England in February. Oops.
We even had a cold snap here in SW Florida. No snow, but the temperatures were 20 degrees lower than the norm.
The first thing that comes to mind when I think of weather is “The Wizard of Oz.” I haven’t used weather in my books so far, but I may change that with the third book.
I love weather, both in real life and in books. I thought of the dementors in Harry Potter and how they brought frost and gloom with them. In my high fantasy, “The Treasures of Carmelidrium,” I use weather both for good and bad.
Nancy
N. R. Williams, fantasy author
Great to see you back, even if you’re covered in snow. We were in Nashville, TN for Christmas and I experienced my first white Christmas EVER! Nashville’s first in 27 years.
I can’t think of any unusual weather that played a big part in books, but I know I’ve read some! I can almost picture scenes but can’t place the books…But it’s something I’ll pay attention for in the future.
Michele
SouthernCityMysteries
Stephen–It’s true…weather affects the writers, too!
Heather–I remember Koontz doing a great job with setting and mood…and it’s cool that he has weather play into that, too.
Maryann–A little *too* convenient, isn’t it? :)
Linda–Ha! I’ve done that kind of thing before, too. :) At least you caught it!
Jane–Isn’t that crazy? I know that it’s possible to even swim outdoors in Florida in some parts…not last week, though!
Nancy–The Dementors! I’d forgotten about them. That’s a great example.
Elspeth–Good point! Yes, they run into the greenhouse to escape the downpour–and discover a body! At least, in *our* world they do!
So funny–I never set out to intentionally make weather central, but I seem to anyway… The Cozy I just turned in has a storm front that has come in causing a need for the ‘film crew’ to have to rush (increasing tension and giving a few humorous scenes) and the suspense I just finished editing has ‘cold’ driving a runaway to seek a place to stay, which is how she runs into the other MCs in the book. Great reminder!
Great to have you back in the blogosphere! :)
I like smaller details like a gray sky or a breeze, when it comes to weather in a story. Little things that can mean a lot.
I cannot believe it snowed in Ga on Christmas! I never thought I’d see that!
Hart–I think the weather makes a really believable device as far as moving characters around and making things happen.
The Golden Eagle–I like that, too. Just a subtle hint.
Dorte–I’ve noticed that, too–mostly because it tickles me since it’s so hot and humid where I live that British heat would be a relief. :)
Michele–I bet it was beautiful there in the snow!
Kristen–Kind of weird, wasn’t it? :)