Why Your Novel Needs a Clear Theme
One of the first questions I ask my coaching clients is, “What is the Point?” In other words, the theme of your book. What do you want the reader to take away? It can be very simple, like “Good triumphs over evil” or “Love conquers all” - in fact, the simpler the better, even if it’s a cliche. A million stories have been written around these cliched themes, and nobody has gotten sick of them yet.
Why do they work? They may be simple, but having one creates a “thematic spine” or strong through-line for the plot and character development to follow.
Without a clear theme, your plot (and characters) may wander aimlessly. Or you may end up with a theme you didn’t want or intend. Or you may think you have one theme, but then actually write toward another, and neither seems organic to the plot and character development. Readers end up confused, frustrated, bored – or all three. Not a desirable outcome!
Everything you write relates to the theme in some way. What happens, and how the characters react to it, show some version of “the truth” as you see it. Theme gives your story cohesiveness, bringing it all together in a satisfying way.
You may resist simplifying your theme, thinking it will dumb down your story, make it less complex, less interesting. But especially for stories that are complex in plot/worldbuilding/many characters, having a theme that is easy to see is important to hold the whole story together. The reader, consciously or subconsciously, always knows what it is, and is more willing to stay with the complex story and see it resolved.
The theme should hint at the resolution. For example, in Game of Thrones, the theme (despite the incredibly complex storyline), is “despite everything, good triumphs over evil.” We know it’s all leading to a final battle between (ambiguous) good and all-out evil. In the Harry Potter series, the main theme of “sacrifice for love of family/friends” plays out throughout the books. In the same way Harry’s parents sacrificed for him, he will be willing to sacrifice for his friends in the ultimate duel between him and Voldemort.
The theme may rest on personal values, such as “it is better to be free and unsafe than bound by duty and secure” (how many historical fiction novels with a female protagonist have that theme?). Or it can be a variation of freedom vs security along any kind of lines – financial freedom, physical freedom, psychological freedom... Or any other value that is strong enough to hold a story together.
A strong theme also gives you a through line to follow as you make decisions about plot and character. If you know what your thematic spine is, you know that decisions that steer away from it risk muddying the waters and confusing the reader – or writing yourself into a corner. It can also give you something to pit plot twists and character revelations against, subverting expectations in a way that ultimately feels satisfying to the reader.
If you can’t say your theme in one simple sentence, then you need to go back and keep digging. The theme is the essence of your story. The seed from which it all springs. Like any seed, it may be buried deep, invisible to the reader, but driving the story from roots to tip. It’s what we unconsciously look for. It’s how we know whether the ending is satisfying or not. And satisfied readers are the ones who keep coming back for more.
If you like this, head on over to the Contact Page and sign up to get my monthly newsletter featuring tips on creativity, productivity, and the writer’s craft.
