THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion

And what Are places in the district of Columbia such as Georgetown and its historical spots and streets allowed to use in books.. or is the town protected and needs permission...? Also such as old town Alexandria by the Potomac river? Historical churches in the area also? And what about when including photos to?

Of course you can set a book in a real place! How could we otherwise have books that were any other genre but fantasy? Most books are set in real places and the more accurate the descriptions, the better! Photos are a great enhancer.

Hi Jo,

If you're set on writing a work of non-fiction, "photos are a great enhancer." Otherwise, if you're set on writing a novel based in a real place, you may want to have the publisher insert a map showing the area where the main events of your novel are played out. One novel you may want to check out to get a sense of how the author has made the place described therein (Berlin) almost a living character is the following ---

Berlin Noir: March Violets; The Pale Criminal; A German Requiem by Philip Kerr