Enriching Your Plot with Setting with Laura Elizabeth Woollett

Learn how to use place to drive your narrative

Join critically acclaimed author Laura Elizabeth Woollett to learn how to drive your narrative with setting and place in fiction.

Whether you’re writing about ancient Rome or your childhood home, a lively and convincing setting can creative narrative drive in your plot, and enhance your characterisation and action. Although we can’t always travel to the places (and eras) we want to write about, by using the tools available to us — including research, memory, imagination, and observation — we may venture further afield and find fresh ways of looking at the familiar. This workshop will teach you how to master the ‘when and where’ of your story without getting bogged down in detail or resorting to clichés.

You'll learn:

  • What setting is and why it’s important
  • How to travel far without leaving your room
  • How to make familiar places compelling
  • Shortcuts for establishing setting, including dialogue and action
  • How to avoid tropes and cultural insensitivity

The course is designed to take you 4-5 hours in total, and can be completed in short stages at your convenience. Scroll down to see the full course curriculum and a list of frequently asked questions.

Read an interview with Laura about writing setting and place here.

"This course shows how you can breathe life into a place, and is an important reminder of how setting can make and/or break your story. Techniques, strategies, examples and practical exercises all make this course worth doing."


KYD Members receive a 10% discount on this course and all other KYD online courses throughout the year. Become a member here, or contact [email protected] for more information.

Want to buy a course for a friend? Purchase a gift voucher here.


Your Instructor


Laura Elizabeth Woollett
Laura Elizabeth Woollett

Laura Elizabeth Woollett is the author of The Love of a Bad Man (Scribe, 2016), and Beautiful Revolutionary (Scribe, 2018). She was a 2017 Asialink artist-in-residence at Komunitas Salihara (Jakarta). In 2018, she received a Neilma Sidney Travel Fund Grant to develop her forthcoming novel The Newcomer (Scribe, 2021), based on a 2002 murder on Norfolk Island. She was recently awarded a 2020-22 Marten Bequest Travelling Scholarship for prose.


Course Curriculum


  Welcome!
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  Part One: Why Are We Here?
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  Part Two: Escapism
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Frequently Asked Questions


When does the course start and finish?
The course starts now and never ends! It is a completely self-paced online course - you decide when you start and when you finish. We encourage you to approach this material not just as lessons to be finished once and for all, but also as a collection of resources to which you can return time and again.
How long do I have access to the course?
Forever! After enrolling, you have unlimited lifetime access to this course - across any and all devices you own.
Does the teacher provide feedback?
No. If you are interested in receiving feedback on your project, we encourage you to check out KYD's Manuscript Assessment Service: https://killyourdarlings.com.au/shop/manuscript-assessments/
How do I access my course?
All our online workshops are hosted at workshops.killyourdarlings.com.au, via the Teachable platform. You can access your workshop by logging in at that link, or by following the link in your welcome email when you enrol. Please note that as the Teachable platform is a separate website to KYD you will need to create a new account, and will not be able to use your KYD login details.
I'm a KYD member. How do I receive my 10% discount?
Click on 'Enrol in course for $169'. Enter the coupon code that was emailed to you when you became a KYD member at checkout, underneath the tutor's photo.
What if I have another question?
You can email us at [email protected] and we'll be happy to help!

Get started now!