When an author, a student writing a paper for his fourth-grade class or a professional author with many books on the shelves bearing her name, constructs a scene, s/he develops a mental image of what is being written. In many cases the author lives the work, walks through the rooms, looks at the content on tables, and sees the layout of the buildings. Each author's vision is unique. Unless they are writing a purely factual text, everything is subject to interpretation. In a fictional work, everything is up for grabs.
I rarely spend so much time over a blog post, and I rarely delete as much as I have on this one to avoid casting stones. I live in as much of a glass house as anyone, and I'm personally a bit shy of stones. I gave a reasoned response to someone I considered a friend yesterday and received a thrown stone in return. *sigh* Maybe next week will be better.