the story take place vs the story takes place

Some examples from the web:

• I just used to... close my eyes, and try to see the story take place.
• The story takes place in Africa.
• The story takes place in Lisbon.
• Photographer Sven Nykvist knew he was in for particular lighting problems, as the story takes place on a cloudy Sunday in November.
• Anyway, the story takes place in a... Well, a faraway land.
• Okay, the second story takes place here in Galapagos.
• The year this story takes place is the year nearly everything happened to me.
• My short story takes place in London.
• Here is where this story takes place.
• My story takes place in a time I call the past.
• Doug's story takes place in a hospital.
• And at this scene this mysterious story takes place .
• Stories take place in a certain area. They have contexts.
• Eliot Arnold's story is a lot like Noah's, except Eliot's story takes place in Miami.
• This story takes place there... ...more than two decades ago
• This is a story that takes place-
• Of course, my fondness for classic science fiction does draw my attention backwards, but those stories often take place in the future.
• So she makes up stories to take the place of her memories.
• I take their stories and place them in a larger context.
• The story you're about to see takes place in a world where the human race has never evolved the ability to tell a lie.

Some examples from the web:

• Anyway, the story takes place in a... Well, a faraway land.
• The story takes place in Africa.
• Photographer Sven Nykvist knew he was in for particular lighting problems, as the story takes place on a cloudy Sunday in November.
• The story takes place in Lisbon.