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Setting is Paramount by Jan Turk Petrie
A few years ago, I began putting together ideas for a potential thriller but knew there was something missing. I planned to set the story in the near future but, as this was to be no space opera, I needed to ground the action in a distinctive place. This is essential for any work of fiction. I chose not to make it a ‘real’ place and yet I wanted the story to be believable even though it including a number of ideas that were a little ‘out there.’ A trip to Iceland with my husband changed everything. I’m a reluctant flier so it takes a lot to get me on a plane but I’d been amazed by a friend’s photographs of the extraordinary landscape and wanted to explore the vast and dramatic interior of the island for myself. During a brief stay in Reykjavik, we went along to the famous ‘Elf School’ where Magnús Skarphédinsson retold so many fascinating tales of the ‘hidden people’ – the elves and trolls many Icelanders firmly believe in. That night we were shaken in our beds by an earthquake. It made me think about the myths and legends that must arise where alongside such ethereal beauty people live with the possibility of catastrophic disaster. We hired a 4x4 and headed east along black volcanic roads passing steaming 76
