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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/45625
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/45625
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

@DPT's answer is great (+1), but let me add one more element to it: it's not enough that your characters interact with the setting. **There needs to be a reason why your characters are there in the first place, the setting needs to affect the story.**

Your characters are in an office. Why? How does it affect the story that they are in the office rather than talking on the phone? Surely there's more to it than the fact one of them can chew on a pen? Is their particular workplace a part of the story? Do they need to be aware of coworkers? Does something happen there that can only happen in an office? And so on.

Consider how locations can enhance your story, what each particular location can give it. If there's nothing, you might as well have the whole story happen in one place.

As an example, in a short story I wrote recently, I needed a meeting between two characters. At first, it could happen anywhere - the important thing was what they said to each other. I wanted a location with a historic significance, because tradition was one theme I explored in the story. I decided on a church, because that accentuated my MC's religious devotion - a character trait important to who he is. Then I went and picked the particular church that was tied to the patron saint of what my story was about. _Then_ I had the characters interact with the setting. In essence, I repeatedly asked myself **what setting would give my story most.**

Original score: 6