Where to Set Urban Fantasy?

I'm having trouble picking a place to set my urban fantasy should i do it close to where i know like the Midwest or make up a whole different place?

 

Will the setting affect the story in any way? If not, it probably doesn't matter. I've set my uf story in the Southeast US because it's where I live and I wanted to instill that Southern Gothic charm I know and love into it. Is there a comparable gain from setting it in the Midwest, where you could give it a personal, local touch?

 

i dont know im thinking i want to do it where i know because i know it can be easier but i was thinking of maybe delving into maybe something other kind of region like small towns kinda interest me on the other hand my uf story keeping things a secert is apart of it though the bulk of it its going to be on a college campus.

 

I've always felt most comfortable setting stories in places I both know and care about, places I've lived and took the time to explore while I was there. Not only do I know those places better so I can come from a position of authority, it keeps me from revisiting places I couldn't wait to get the hell out of at the time... Sudbury, Calgary, Bancroft... places like that.

 

I struggled for a long time trying to write fantasy set in magical places, only to really find I enjoyed setting my ideas in crappy English towns and found it really easy. Reason why? I live in a crappy English town, I'm from a crappy English town, I've travelled through crappy English towns, I've been to crappy English towns.

Though it could be seen as dull to write about what you know (and it's not always possible if you're looking to write the next LOTR), its certainly the easiest and most familiar. I feel that every town, city, country, regardless of where they are or what they are, have their charms, even if that charm is just how deliciously dull and boring they are. Setting something wild and fantastical in somewhere like Norfolk is interesting in it's own right.

 

yeah im torn between the two though creating a whole new magical world seems like a bit of a task

 

It's really not! Look at the classical fantasy Alice in Wonderland for example. If you read carefuly, you can clearly pick out different locations around London that Lewis Carroll used. All you have to do is change the existing location to something fantastical; whimsical even. Turn your small town into a large town simply by changing your perspective. Or vise versa.

Just my 3 cents. Cheers!

~Tera

 

thanks thats helpful

 

Cēsis, Latvia.

The only sensible choice.