The Writers' Lounge

This is a really interesting point, something I haven't thought about but on reflection, I have made the homes an extension of my characters.

In one book I describe what a character sees upon entering a home for the first time:
"Inside is dark, quiet, smelling of cigarette smoke, spices, and mildew. Slowly he walks across the narrow foyer where he drops his pack, and starts down the hallway, peeping into the rooms as he passes. The front room is sparsely furnished with a few unmatched chairs and one low, long table. Across the hall is a small drawing room filled with art. What wasn’t hanging on the walls was leaning against them, stacked two or three deep. Sculptures, pottery and artifacts cluttered small tables, a cacophony of different styles, different origins and conceptualizations. The rooms and their contents seem to be detached staging areas for bits and pieces that held no sway in day-to-day life. He begins to wonder whether his father had really lived there at all, or if it was just a place for him to stash belongings and gather mail."

In another, there are three residences that reflect my characters. One is a darkened cave shared by two secret lovers. It is a physical extension of their relationship, blind to one another yet intimate. One character lives by himself in a castle chamber (isolated), another lives in a busy family compound (outgoing with no secrets held).

So yes, I do use dwellings as representations of characters, I just never put that together. Thank you for bringing this to my attention!