You established your place to write, and are working on developing your writing routine. Today let’s talk about Deciding on a Theme.
Have you ever heard the phrase, “flying by the seat of his pants?” That refers to an airplane pilot who doesn’t file flight plans. He just flies his plane in the direction he thinks he needs to go, and expects to get there. But events outside his control such as inclement weather and physical problems with the plane can generate life-threatening situations. A flight plan can save his life, or at least get him back on track.
There are actually 2 parts of the flight plan: 1) where he wants to go, and 2) how he’s going to get there.
Some people “write by the seat of their pants.” Some of them thrive in it, but some writers flail in confusion because of it. They don’t have a direction, or a theme.
Now, to understand what a theme is, let’s look at that flight plan.
1) Where the pilot wants to go would be the theme (the underlying message the author is trying to convey to the reader), and 2) how he’s going to get there is the plot (the structure that the storyteller uses to show how the events are connected).
Let’s turn it around.
If someone asks you what’s your story about, and you say, “It’s a story about an angry man who robs banks, is arrested, but is befriended by the policeman who arrested him,” that’s the plot of the story. But if you say, “It’s about love overcoming hate,” that’s the theme.
The theme is the central message behind the story. It connects all the major ideas in the book together.
While the plot tells what happens in the story, the theme explains why it happens. It gives meaning to the story. Without a theme, your story is a recording of actions and events, but it doesn’t explain why these actions happen. Most likely you have a plot in mind, but deciding on a theme will help keep you on track.
I’ll see you tomorrow.
Write Creatively
P & L Publishing 