: Re: Is it a good idea to try to make my readers feel attached to the character's home? Towards the beginning of my story, my character is forced to leave home. I'm hoping this scene will be

@Yeniel532

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I think the key is how you and the character define home, and how that relates to the average reader's idea of home.

If "home" is simply the house, you'll want to create an emotional connection to the place that feels like a severe break. This doesn't necessarily mean you have to describe the color of the paint or the type of moulding. On the other hand, worn carpeting that indicates well-trodden paths from point A to point B can speak volumes about the character and his/her place in the home.

If "home" includes the familial relationships, you'll want to show what those mean to the character at the time of the rift. This is more about showing the pain of the break and the trajectories it sends the main character down.

Ultimately, this break from home should influence and affect the character throughout the story, either diminishing in power as a new life is lived or increasing in power as the pain gets too strong to bear.

If you're interested in reading stories containing descriptions of homes that relate directly to the characters, check out Balzac (particularly Eugenie Grandet or Pere Goriot) or Bleak House by Dickens. Gravity's Rainbow has very interesting descriptions that create a great sense of place and character and Joyce's Ulysses unites Bloom with his locales very nicely. (These last two don't necessarily have an emotional impact, though.)

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