How To Write A Good Book - a guide

THEMES

WHAT IS A THEME?

Theme is usually defined as what a novel is "about." But that sounds dangerously like "subject matter." And a novel's subject matter is something tangible, like...

a mission to Mars in a science fiction novela bank robbery in a crime novel.

Theme, on the other hand, is not tangible at all. You can usually boil it down to a phrase like...

grief, unrequited love, blind faith.

Something abstract like that. So I prefer to define it as what the concrete events of a novel mean. Think of it like this...

If you shot a movie of a novel, the characters, events and places could all be captured by the camera and projected onto a screen for the audience to see and hear.

Theme, on the other hand, is invisible. The camera wouldn't pick it up because there's nothing to see. But it's still there in the form of the lesson that the surface story teaches us (and teaches the characters). Or the conclusion that can be drawn from the concrete events.

If all of this is sounding vague, that's because theme is difficult to pin down. But we're slowly edging closer to a more concrete definition...

Theme is the deeper layer of meaning running beneath a story's surface

Theme is the deeper layer of meaning running beneath the story's surface. While the surface story entertains the readers, the theme helps them to reach a new understanding of some aspect of the human condition.

Novels are about people (fictional characters) undergoing experiences (plots) in particular times and places (settings).These experiences – their nature, and the effect they have on the characters – will cause the reader to come to conclusions about some aspect of life.These conclusions are your theme.

If you aspire to be a good or a great novelist, you must take theme seriously, no matter what type of fiction  you write (literary or genre)

For the simple reason that all humans seek a better understanding of life. We're all on a quest for "meaning" from a very early age, whether we are aware of it or not.

So if your story is light on theme, or if the theme is there but not particularly heartfelt, you'll leave your readers unsatisfied.

Can a novel have more than one theme?

Ideally, you should deal with one theme only. But there can, of course, be all sorts of related sub-themes.

Suppose that the underlying message of the story is all about grief. That theme has all sorts of related issues...

lossangerguiltacceptancehopememoriesnew beginnings.

All of these issues are slightly different. And yet they're all linked in some way to the novel's overall theme of grief.

Would it be acceptable to use any of the following as sub-themes?

shyness greed power 

DEVELOP YOUR THEME

This happens after you've chosen an idea for your novel but before you get into the nitty-gritty of planning and writing it.

The task involves spending a work session thinking about your theme in more detail. Ask yourself questions like these...

How do you feel about your theme in your heart?What do you think about it in your head?If the theme is a problem that needs solving, what's the solution?Are there several potential solutions? Or none at all?How does your actual experience with the theme differ from the "accepted wisdom" on the topic?How is it the same?

As you chew the theme over in your mind, get your thoughts down on paper. You're writing a novel, not an academic paper. But for now pretend that you are researching a paper.

You might find that you have a clear solution to the problem presented by the theme, or no solution at all. (Having no solution is fine. It's the writer's job to raise questions, not necessarily to answer them.)

More likely, you'll have mixed feelings about your theme, seeing it from several different perspectives. Again, that's fine. In fact, it's ideal.

THEME IDEAS

 loss of innocence, love and sacrifice, loyalty,courage, family, fate, fear, friendship, freedom, abuse of power, beating the odds, chaos and order, circle of life, coming of age, effects of the past, everlasting love, greed, growing up, happiness, justice, losing of hope, man against nature, peer pressure, youth and beauty, survival, truth, time, progress, quest for discovery, revenge, religion, self-awareness, winners and losers, good and evil, will to survive, quest for power, power and corruption, empowerment, pride, ego, taking risks, independence, determination, facing reality,reunion, temptation, suffering, fortune, beauty, death, birth, betrayal, escape, prejudice, heroism. And many more. 

Once you've taken the time and effort to "sow the seeds of theme" in your mind, you need to let go and trust in the magic. Your subconscious will guide you as you write a focused novel that has a deeper layer of meaning in the form of a strong theme.