Creative Writing Novel Workshop - Success with Theme

What is a theme? A theme is the message you're trying to get across to the reader. Going back to Matrix Writing, it's the picture that you create with your novel. Without it, your novel is just a jumble of complex plots and compelling characters. And no matter how good you are at writing, your novel will always lack that extra something that is a theme. Learn about themes in this lecture, and what exactly they are. 

I believe theme is the single most important element of novel creation, and for good reason. Too many authors today either do not know what theme is, or fail to recognize just how important it is. J. K. Rowling is one of the few who did, and her novels swept all others before them with next to zero effort. In this and the next few lectures, I'll do my best to explain exactly why theme is so important. 

It's important that you start developing your novels with theme and nothing else. In section three you'll see very clearly why this is, and just how much you can get out of your theme. In this lecture, I'll give you my 'pumpkin pie example' to demonstrate why you have to start with theme. If you add it in later, everything else you do simply will not work. Learn the importance of beginning with theme. 

Important Note: When I say that you should start with theme, I do NOT mean that the first pages of your novel should be about your theme. In fact, that's one of the fastest ways you can lose your readers. What I mean is that you should start your development with theme. You have to start planning your novel somewhere; that place is theme. 

Inexperienced authors - and experienced ones who know nothing about theme - often fall into this trap. There are two broad categories of ways to get your theme across: showing and telling. Those that tell their theme practically doom their novels to never reach the publisher. Those that show their theme not only succeed, but do so in a very powerful way that readers will love. Learn how to relate your theme in this lecture. 

Symbols might not be directly related to theme, but they can be extremely useful in getting it across. Some themes are just easier to relate than others, and for the most stubborn of themes, symbols can come in handy. Like theme itself though, you need to know if you're going to be using a symbol from the very beginning. Picture Lord of the Rings if Tolkein had realized only half way through that he might need a Ring to convey what he wanted to. The book would have been completely different. 

Originality is a lot like air. No, really. We have two options when it comes to being original. We can stick with the same stagnant practices that work, or look for something new. Think of a closed room. You know the air inside will keep you alive, but if you open a window and let in a fresh breeze, you add new life to the familiar surroundings of the room. Sticking with the old air - aka cliches - will be boring to the reader. Learn how to open the window in this lecture. 

Step One is all about defining the theme. Before you use your theme, you need to know exactly what it is. Vague impressions or ideas won't cut it; you need to have a solid definition and know exactly what it is. This step is designed to do just that. 

Similar to the previous lecture, there's more you have to do to your theme before you can start working with it. Specifically, you have to define exactly what it is about. It may seem obvious to you, but it is very important to do this step. Define the core concepts of your theme, and you will have identified the backbone of your story. 

Your story needs a goal, and that goal needs to relate to the theme. If it doesn't, your entire story will be thrown out of sink. Trust me, I know. This step will look back at the theme, and figure out what it is trying to accomplish. 

Now that you know the goal of your theme, you can define the ending of your novel. Take the time to craft this very important part of your story. 

It may be more character creation than part of theme, but the inner journey is something you should get down now, before anything else has a chance to contaminate it. You already have the people in your story struggling to prove the theme; now you need to have your main characters struggle to prove it to themselves as well. 

This is it. Now is the time to take everything you've learned from your theme and put it all together. You'll get to see your story for the first time. Take your time with this step. Remember, the synopsis is the framework that everything else builds off of after this. Get this wrong, and your development will eventually run into problems days, weeks, or months later, forcing you to go back to this point. Get the synopsis right. 

This is the final step, but it's still important. The story type tells you important information about your story. From it, you'll be able to make sure that you're beginning and ending where you're supposed to. Additionally, it will be useful later on. 

Once you get inspiration, it can be tempting to just start developing with it. Don't. What you think is the theme usually isn't. Learn how to decipher inspiration correctly, and turn those sudden rushes of drive into powerful stories. 

I've discovered that there are two very broad methods of relating theme in novels. One is the 'throughout' method, which is the one I've been teaching. The other is the 'set up' method, which takes a completely different approach. Find out how these two methods change your novel, and let me know which one you would use. 

Review everything we've covered, and get ready for future courses on writing. Theme is only the beginning.