None of this applies to wonderful books, and that s what you want to write not just a book that s good enough to be published, but a wonderful book. Let your characters pick their own setting. It s not. Assuming you have made the choice between historical and contemporary, the next step is to take a good look at your characters. The setting will influence everything from their speech patterns to clothing choices to manners and values.
Setting can be a source of conflict.
Setting as a character. Certain settings take on lives of their own. Consider Margaret Mitchell s Atlanta or Georgette Heyer s Regency London. The settings are so important to the story they become characters in their own right. They evoke a strong and specific response from readers, and the stories would not be the same if the settings were changed.