History Of Science Fiction

Briseis asked:


I know that I want there to be a love story. There should be some conflict at some point, either they don’t like each other at first, or one isn’t interested at first, or something happens to separate them for a time, or one of them is in danger… But romance doesn’t have to be the main genre. What happens with them has to be part of a larger interesting plot.

I don’t even know where/when I want the setting to be! I don’t feel like I can do something contemporary because I never really read contemporary novels. I usually stick to classics. I don’t think I know enough to set the story in the past or the distant future, although the future seems more likely because it would require less research. I thought of doing something science fiction, but I don’t know how to create my own universe like in Star Trek/Wars.

I feel like if I knew what the setting would be, I could create a character, and maybe a story would come out of that. But how do I figure out what setting to use?

Neil