Theme

A good book entertains, a great book inspires – and great books have themes. The theme is the universal message that runs through your entire story. A well crafted story will have a unique and interesting theme tying into the goal of the character and that will make people either have an ‘Aha moment’ or question their preconceived notions. 

Themes can be broadly classified into the following categories;

1. Man vs Himself (internal conflict) e.g. identity crisis
2. Man vs Man
3. Man vs Society
4. Man vs Nature
5. Man vs Machine
6. Man vs The Supernatural

To test your story’s theme, answer this question: What’s your story about? If you answered ‘it’s about a woman who sets off to find her adoptive mother’ only, you need to put in some work in. Give a brief of the unspoken message like ‘it’s about the religious and their struggle to conform to societal expectations.’ Of course reading between lines you can figure out that her mother (or father) will be a religious woman who had a child of wedlock.

As you try to integrate your theme into your story try not to sound too preachy, a talk show with an un-objective host. Don’t let your message overshadow the story in such a way that it seems contrived.