Tips for Writing Theme
The idea of “writing theme” probably brings up memories of high school English class—analyzing the Meaning-with-a-capital-M in classics like To Kill a Mockingbird or Lord of the Flies. While theme is an important ingredient in storytelling, it doesn’t have to resound with Meaning. In fact, theme works best when it’s subtle and even open to interpretation. Here are three tips that’ll help you incorporate theme into your story.
The act of writing theme is an important ingredient in storytelling, but it doesn’t have to resound with Meaning-with-a-capital-M.
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Finish a Complete Draft Before Writing Theme
“The first draft is just you telling yourself the story.” ― Terry Pratchett
It’s helpful to think of writing theme as developing the emotional core of your story ... and it’s hard to be sure of what that emotional core is until you’ve typed The End. Even if you’ve plotted your story meticulously before drafting, I can almost guarantee that your characters will surprise you. Not to mention the fact that YOU will change as The Story of Your Life develops. Novel writing is a long, slow process—it may take you two or three years (or more!) to get it all down. Chances are that your worldview will shift during that time, even if it’s just a little bit. And, because the Universe is cheeky, I bet you’ll find that the perspective you gained during your writing journey is essential to developing the emotional core of your story.
Even if you start drafting with a theme in mind, the writing process and new life experiences will uncover layers and nuance you hadn’t considered before. To borrow Terry Pratchett’s phrase, you need to finish “telling yourself the story” before you can identify and refine that emotional core.
Consider Your Personal Background
Once you’ve typed The End, it’s time to figure out what your story is really about. Presumably, your manuscript connects to your life experience in some way—if not literally, then at least in terms of emotional truth. (Check out GSC editor Michal Leah’s post on writing what you know for more on this topic.) In fact, it may have happened without you even realizing it. Consider this interview snippet with Billie Eilish, talking about writing her album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Interviewer: You do cover any number of topics that are difficult. Whether it's depression, anxiety. Very personal topics. Why be so transparent?
Eilish: I never decided to. I never was, like, "I'm gonna talk about this. And I'm gonna talk about this." I just talked about what I was feeling. And then it became this, like, "Oh, she's making a statement." Which I actually love because I didn't realize I was. And now that I think about it, I realize how many people aren't talking about that kind of stuff and why people are so shocked when you do talk about it. I'm like, "Why is that so shocking? I'm telling you about how I am as a human. Why is that weird?"
This quote brings up a central question to consider when you’re writing theme: How are you as a human? What personal truths have crept into your manuscript? Once you’ve identified those thematic elements, you can start developing them during revision.
And one more note on personal background—make sure you have the life experience to back up your emotional core. To use the depression and anxiety example again, if a writer hasn’t dealt with those things personally, it would seem disingenuous to offer commentary on that particular human experience. Your theme will ring truer if you have felt the things your characters feel.
How to Write Theme
"Never explain anything." — HP Lovecraft
So how, exactly, do you develop your theme? Some people might be able to work purely off intuition, but I always like an action plan. Try these steps as you’re writing theme:
Once you have a complete manuscript, set it aside. Most writing advice recommends 2-6 months—whatever you need to forget your story enough so you can see it objectively when you go back for revisions.
During this time away, journal about the emotional core of your story. Some questions to explore:
What has been your life experience around this theme?
Do you have any blind spots around this particular emotion or experience? Assumptions or stereotypes?
What layers and nuances exist within your theme? For example, “love” or “grief” are super-broad topics with a million shades of gray. What nuances can you highlight in your story?
Once you go back to your manuscript, start by making sure the skeleton of your story is sound. (Are all the necessary beats there and in the right order? Do all of your characters have a clear purpose and arc?) THEN do a specific revision just for writing theme.
Here’s an example of what to look for when you’re revising for theme. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is a rich exploration of racial identity. One of the characters is a Black woman who’s spent most of her life “passing” as white—even her husband doesn’t know her true identity. In many of the scenes where they’re together, he’s not looking right at her; he’s looking at her reflection in the mirror. This is a subtle way of showing how he doesn’t see her—he sees an illusion.
Which brings me to the most important technique to use when writing theme:
If you’re writing a story about a character’s resilience in the face of loss and grief, show them facing those difficult emotions. Show them working towards—and then living—their emotional truth.
Why?
Explaining—or telling—takes away a reader’s ability to interpret the story’s emotional core for themselves. Encouraging reflection and active engagement with your story is what will give it staying power long after the book is closed. It might even inspire readers to look at their own lives through the lens of your story, your theme—and change them for the better.
When done right, your theme won’t be confetti popping all over the place with Meaning, but it’ll work its way into hearts and minds and make a home there. That’s the goal.
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