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Soooo… I’d really like to nail down a theme before I continue with my next story so that I can take it in a good direction without overthinking it, as I’m prone to do. Unfortunately, I almost always hit a roadblock when I try to create a theme that both holds my interest and isn’t cliche, such as the typical “love conquers all” or “revenge leads to destruction” platitudes. Any tips for formulating strong themes?
The one thing I think of, when it comes to deciding on a theme, is myself.
Sometimes, when I’m writing, I step back and take a look at my characters, only to realize that within them are little pieces of myself–loneliness, creativity, past regrets. This makes the characters more realistic; by drawing on these feelings and memories, I make them come alive in my mind.
I think the same goes for theme. Write about something you’re passionate about, something that you feel the world needs to know. A theme isn’t just a generic message you put in your story–kinda like one of those boring, one-line greeting cards you find at the store–it’s like a handwritten note, messy print and all. Your theme should be centered around your perspective of the world; through it, you’ll reveal to your readers how you see the world, and what you believe about what’s happening around you.
So basically? Look inside yourself. Find something you’re passionate about, and writing the theme will be a reflection of the beliefs you hold inside you.
Hope this helps.
Writer. Dreamer. Sometimes blogger. MBTI mess. Lover of Jesus and books.
@waterlily Definitely what Elizabeth said.
Also, on another note, things like love conquers all” and “revenge leads to destruction” aren’t actually themes, they’re messages. I don’t know if you’ve ever looked into KP’s Theme Mastery course, but one of the things we teach in there is that a theme should never be controversial like “revenge leads to destruction”. That’s your message. It’s your point. Your theme though should be broader like “love” or “justice” or maybe “tough relationships” and “dealing with enemies”. Your theme is what you write about. It’s a unifying factor that glues your story together. If you know how to apply theme to your story, it will also increase the power of your message.
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@waterlily Check out these two articles on @jane-maree’s blog! They are SO helpful!
You can pronounce it however you want.
@waterlily If you’ve subscribed to Kingdom Pen, you will receive KP’s free resources. There’s a worksheet there that will work you through the concepts that basically everyone said above 🙂
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literatureforthelight.wordpress.com- Rank: Loyal Sidekick
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@that_writer_girl_99 @daeus @dekreel @gh24682468999 Thanks everyone for the tips! I have some ideas now. 🙂
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