As a native Californian, I’m not sure I’m qualified to pick a favorite season. I mean, summer is mostly pleasant and occasionally hot, autumn is slightly cooler and occasionally windy, winter is cooler still and occasionally cold (although tell a Canadian you had to put on your heavy coat because it was 40 degrees outside, and they’ll break into hysterics), and spring is just like autumn, only occasionally rainy. Not a lot of variation.
I’ve never stocked my pantry and piled up firewood in anticipation of winter snowfall. Or sat on a screened-in porch during hot summer evenings because the insects were so big they might eat a small dog. Many a winter morning, I’ve looked wistfully at my shelf of heavy sweaters while I pulled down a cotton blouse to wear instead. If I had to pick a favorite season, it would be autumn, but mostly for the time of year, not the weather. With small kids, the joy of Halloween has only increased. Then Thanksgiving is a few weeks later, followed by the build-up for Christmas. Sure, Christmas falls into the realm of winter by a handful of days, but the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas are full of parties, decorating, and family fun.
Mind you, when working on a book, I shy away from the autumn season, full of holiday cheer. I’m not writing a script for a Hallmark holiday movie. I’m dealing with dead bodies, a situation that makes most people uncomfortable, and I want the weather to make the characters even more uncomfortable. So I lean toward the bitter cold of winter (having to exaggerate slightly since my book takes place in Northern California) and the crippling heat of summer, two extremes that drive people indoors, where they try to avoid the elements unless they have no choice.
As a matter of fact, I’m currently writing a scene where my protagonist is forced to paint outside during a heat wave. She’s trying to eavesdrop, question people, and paint, all without melting into a puddle of sweat. Now that summer has officially arrived, that scene is pretty easy to imagine. With the recent increase in temperature, I’m feeling sorry for Dana as she swelters in the summer sun. Thank goodness I get to write this blog indoors!
What season do you like to see a story set in?
