plot character theme header

Plot, Character, and Theme: The Greatest Love Triangle in Fiction

plot character themeOnce upon a time, Character fell in love with Plot. Right from the start, it was a stormy relationship. There was passion, there was romance, there were epic stakes. And conflict? Puh-lenty.

Sometimes they were pretty sure they couldn’t live with each other a moment longer. Sometimes they tried to give each other up altogether. But even the most adamant intentions couldn’t keep them apart for longer than a lukewarm novel or two. Inevitably, these two star-crossed lovers always reunited, their reincarnations seeking each other out again and again throughout the ages.

They never seemed to realize Theme watched them from afar, love largely unrequited. During all the glory days when fans fervently debated Plot vs. Character, Theme was the one who secretly made the relationship work. Toiling silently behind the scenes, Theme kept pushing Plot and Character together, even when they thought they hated each other. Theme gave meaning to their union. Theme made them a team.

And so goes the greatest epic saga in all of fiction.

***

Like some new chicken-and-egg debate, writers frequently weigh the respective merits of plot and character. Which came first? Which is more important? Which is the hallmark of the truly great stories?

But this debate is, in my opinion, a false paradigm.

To begin with, it’s a dilemma with no conclusive answer (character-driven fiction offers one array of fictional techniques, plot-driven fiction another—both equally valid and important). Even more importantly, this type of either/or questioning tends to ignore the fact that character and plot’s relationship is part of a larger triangle—crowned by none other than wispy, metaphysical, powerful, unavoidable theme.

Why Writers Believe They Can’t Plot Theme

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Why is theme so often excluded from the grand tug of war between plot and character?

There are a couple reasons.

The most obvious is simply that writers often don’t view theme in the same category as plot and character. Plot and character are concrete pieces of story. Theme seems more like some abstract force. Plot and character are almost always discussed in terms of technique: “This is how you do it, kids…” Theme, on the other hand, is often referenced with vague hand gestures: “Oh, you know, it just sort of happens…”

In fact, some writers turn this principle of Thematic Vagueness into a kind of religion. When eager new writers look on high for answers about theme (“How do I write a story with a strong theme?), the responses are adamantly mysterious (“Thou shalt never write theme on purpose“).

The mysteriousness arises from a poor comprehension of how theme functions and interacts with other major story components. Because poorly executed themes are often those that are most obvious and on-the-nose, writers sometimes scare themselves off the subject altogether. We evolve from a healthy fear of preachy themes to an irrational avoidance of theme altogether.

It’s true that powerful, cohesive themes sometimes emerge naturally from a writer’s subconscious. But what’s even truer is that these seemingly subconscious themes inevitably emerge thanks to the author’s intentional understanding and use of those other storytelling Titans: plot and character.

Right there lies the secret. If you can execute your plot and character with understanding and intention, then you’re this close to a conscious execution of theme itself. No more hoping and and praying your subconscious talks to you in a way you understand well enough to transcribe. No more confusion about why your excellent plot and awesome characters sometimes refuse to play nice and combine into an equally amazing story. No more worrying readers will find your story soulless or—just as bad—a self-righteous sermon.

Instead, you can bring theme out of the mists and let it work in the daylight, allowing it to guide your every story decision.

Theme creates Character creates Plot creates Theme

In my opening allegory, I cast plot, character, and theme as a triangle. But perhaps an even more helpful geometric figure is that of a circle—representing the unending, regenerative relationship of fiction’s Big Three.

theme character plot arrows

Plot, character, and theme are not individual, isolated aspects of story. As such, they cannot be developed in isolation. Rather, they are each part of a larger symbiosis.

Theme isn’t just a nice greeting-card sentiment randomly mouthed by the protagonist at some point. Rather, theme creates character, which in turn creates plot, which brings the circle all the way around and, in turn, generates theme, which creates character which creates plot which creates… ad infinitum.

Honestly, I geek out just thinking about it. Theme inherently signifies the unifying patterns found within a larger whole, so even on a meta level, it makes total sense that theme is both generative and receptive in its relationship to plot and character.

Art of Fiction John GardnerIn his classic writing volume The Art of Fiction, instructor John Gardner wrote:

Theme, it should be noticed, is not imposed on the story but evoked from within it—initially an intuitive but finally an intellectual act on the part of the writer.

What this means is that you, the writer, have the ability to start with any one of the Big Three and use it to create cohesive manifestations in the other two. If you begin with a plot idea, character and theme will already be inherent seeds within that kernel. If you begin with character? Same deal. And if you begin with theme? Ah, no more worries about preachiness. You now have the ability to craft powerful messages that are shown via your plot and character, rather than told to readers.

At some point, once you become accustomed to looking at plot, character, and theme as three faces of a greater whole, it becomes difficult to extricate one from the other enough to even identify which occurred to you first.

Identifying Your Story’s Thematic Layers

As a storyteller, your end goal should be a seamless big picture for readers. One of the most useful processes for reaching that goal is, in fact, mentally breaking down the larger picture and keeping its specific parts separate within your own mind. This alone will dispel the haze of ambiguity surrounding theme. Once you can see what each major piece of the story is and is not, you will have a better understanding of how they relate to and impact one another.

Naturally, this is a deep and nuanced subject, one that encompasses all of plot structure and character arc for starters. (I plan to dig further into the nuances of theme in future posts throughout the course of this year.) But for now, consider the three (and a half) mirroring layers that can be found in almost every part of every story.

1a. Exterior Plot Action

Structuring Your Novel: Essential Keys for Writing an Outstanding Story

Structuring Your Novel (Amazon affiliate link)

This is usually represented in reactive/active behaviors from the protagonist (and other characters). This is what is happening in a story. It’s the action your characters experience and your readers visualize.

For Example:

  • Inman is journeying home in Cold Mountain.
cold mountain inman reunites with ada

Cold Mountain (2003), Miramax Films.

  • Juliet is talking to the islanders about their experiences during World War II in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.
  • Sydney Carton is rescuing Charles Darnay in A Tale of Two Cities.
  • Kaladin is fighting as a slave in the never-ending war on the Shattered Plains in The Way of Kings.

1b. Main Conflict

Usually, the main conflict is part and parcel of the exterior plot action; however, because it often manifests differently, it’s worth considering it as a layer of its own. Whereas the exterior plot action is usually physical in some sense, the main conflict is often represented on a mental level. Effectively, it is a puzzle for the protagonist to solve. It may be either an outright mystery. Or it may simply be a series of goals/conflicts/outcomes, which progressively teach the protagonist how to reach the ultimate plot goal.

For Example:

  • Inman figures out how to get home, both by learning to navigate the mountains and by deducing how to get past the obstacles presented by each person he meets on his way.
  • Juliet figures out, on a general level, how to convince the islanders to talk to her, while in pursuit of the more specific mystery of what happened to the missing Elizabeth McKenna.
guernsey literary and potato peel pie society

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018), StudioCanal.

  • Sydney comes up with a plan to journey to France and rescue Charles.
  • Kaladin figures out how to survive as first a slave, then a soldier.

2. Character Arc

Creating Character Arcs (Amazon affiliate link)

The character arc (usually, although not necessarily exclusively, the protagonist’s) represents the inner conflict, which will, in turn, catalyze and/or be catalyzed by the outer conflict, presented in the plot’s external action.

Note that we started our list with the top layer—the most obvious layer—of plot. But as we dig deeper into successive layers, we get closer to the heart of the story. If you think of a story’s plot action as an externalized metaphor for the character’s inner conflict and growth, you will have discovered one of the key ways in which the abstraction of theme is made concrete within the actual story.

For Example:

  • Inman battles his own doubt and suffering in his overwhelming desire to escape the Civil War and get home to his sweetheart Ada.
  • Juliet begins falling in love with Guernsey in general and the kind but taciturn Dawsey in particular.
  • Sydney struggles with saving Darnay for Lucie, when it means cutting off any hope of his being with the woman he loves.
Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities (1935), MGM.

  • Kaladin’s bitterness over his lot and his hatred for those who enslaved him war with his inherent nobility and his natural leadership skills.

3. Theme

And now we hit bedrock. As the least visible but most important of a story’s layers, theme is the realization of all that has gone before. It is the symbolic argument between a posited Truth and Lie, which is played out in the protagonist’s personal arc and throughout the external plot (which, in its turn, has forced the character’s growth).

For Example:

  • Out of Inman’s and Ada’s separate struggles and ultimately futile attempt to be together arises an introspective theme about the search for meaning in the face of suffering.
  • In falling in love with the simple valor and loyalty found in Guernsey, both during the war and after, Juliet finally discovers purpose and meaning in her own life.
  • In ultimately sacrificing himself in Darnay’s stead, Sydney surrenders his dissipated life in exchange for “a far, far better rest … than I have ever known.”
  • Kaladin’s struggle to overcome his bitterness and hatred—mirrored, contrasted, and finally aided by the many characters around him—culminates in a growing commitment to selfless leadership.

way of kings brandon sanderson

Again, note that these elements are most visible in the stated order (plot > character > theme); however, their importance in defining the story is actually the reverse.

No matter what type of story you write, its success will arise from the balance of its three most important pieces: plot, character, and theme. When you work on any one of these, you are necessarily working on all three. If you can raise them all into purposeful synchronicity as you write, you will not only bring theme out of the shadows, you will also be able to craft a story of deep meaning and purpose every single time.

Wordplayers, tell me your opinions! Which of the three—plot, character, and theme—comes most naturally to you? Which is the least intuitive for you? Tell me in the comments!

Click the “Play” button to Listen to Audio Version (or subscribe to the Helping Writers Become Authors podcast in Apple Podcast or Amazon Music).

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About K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland

K.M. Weiland is the award-winning and internationally-published author of the acclaimed writing guides Outlining Your Novel, Structuring Your Novel, and Creating Character Arcs. A native of western Nebraska, she writes historical and fantasy novels and mentors authors on her award-winning website Helping Writers Become Authors.

Comments

  1. I stumbled upon this blog a few weeks ago, and I just wanted to thank you for your work. This one post is as inspiring as the previous, but reminds me why I value your insightful advice so much…
    I always kind of felt like the concept of “cohesion and resonance” should be the key to truly great fiction, the subtle “alchemy” that makes a book feel magic, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone voice that idea as convincingly and soundly as you do in your articles and books.
    Anyway, please do keep up your great work !

  2. I love how your posts open my eyes to what’s bugging me about my WIP. You repeatedly have rescued me from floundering for days or weeks in search of what is right in front of me. Now, with the last couple posts — wow! — you have made me think about theme with more precision, and I realize that the character arc of one of my two main protagonists is not developed enough thematically… Which is why I’ve been resistant to writing her lately. You explain things in a very organized yet organic way, and not everyone can do that.

  3. Ah, what a touching love story, with poor Theme watching from afar. 🙂 It’s amazing how theme makes a story actually matter. I’m thinking of `Watership Down,’ the way the theme -that a good leader is willing to sacrifice his own desires and maybe even his life for his people (or rabbit warren)- informs everything from the rabbitty folk-tales to their encounters with other rabbit warrens and seeing how those leaders (or lack of leaders in the case of the first warren they visit) fail to selfishness, indolence, and/or tyranny. It’s an amazing book that, without theme, would just be a bunch of rabbits wondering around (booring!) and yet it took me several readings to even understand what the theme was.

  4. Hi, I don’t know if you’re looking for suggestions, but I would love to see a post about using your own life in fiction e.g real people, places, situations, backstory. Like, when to use it, when to avoid it, how much is too much, how to mitigate/avoid it etc. Anyway, thank you for this blog. <3

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Thanks for the idea! I’ll mull on it and see what happens, although I don’t use real life in my own fiction much at all, so I’m not sure how much I have to say on the subject. 😉

  5. It’s the holy trinity of storytelling. Interesting way of looking at theme. Thanks!

  6. I like the concept of layers, because it corresponds with my writing process. Theme is often the last element to fully emerge, while with each step I dig a little deeper to the essence of the story.

    This post encouraged me to dig to the bottom sooner, so all the main components can work in harmony. Now to apply… 🙂

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Yes, understanding all this stuff is one challenge; executing it is another challenge altogether!

  7. Character always comes easiest for me, then theme. Plot is hardest for me to show the inner character arc in an external way.

  8. Linda O’Donnell says

    Plot comes first for me, followed by character. Theme has been eluding me and that’s why I’m not happy with my WIP. It’s lurking in the back of my consciousness but I need to draw it out and make my WIP whole. It’s easier said than done. Thanks for the thought-provoking piece.

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      You might try “dreamzoning,” which I talked about a couple posts back. Basically, it’s just intense daydreaming. I like to do it to music. I get a ton of feedback, usually in the form of images, from my subconscious that way.

  9. Plot is what comes to me first then the characters start to fill it in. Theme has never entered my thoughts. I’ll have to go back to those stories and see how I did. Maybe thinking theme while plotting will make a better story. Thanks.

  10. JA Schmidt says

    Thanks for this KM. Comes at a good time for me as I revise my WIP. Have you read CS Larkin’s book, Writing the Heart of Your Story?

  11. Mary George says

    For me, ‘theme’ was rolled into a separate room, door shut, with an induced coma. I wrote all of the relevant action scenes first. This really helped shape the characters. Then I filled in with segue scenes with dialogue, introspections, settings, a bit of backstory . . . finally, ‘theme’ was distilled through the process of revision. It allowed me to change the dialogue, or up the drama, or fine-tune the conflicts. As it now stands, the various, recurring “themes” include abusiveness, loyalty, compassion, the kindness of strangers, betrayal, maternal love vs. romantic love, God vs. ‘what God?’ and a few others that act as the glue to show how differently humans think. How complex and complicated we can truly be. . . . oh right, this is fiction . . .

  12. Ronald Tobias wrote an excellent book about this subject: Theme and Strategy: How to Build a Strong, Narrative Structure to Help Your Fiction Stand Tall, Run Fast, Hit Hard, and Soar to Success (Elements of Fiction Writing)
    by Ronald B. Tobias ….this is not a link, but the book can be obtained from Amazon ….

  13. I’ve been struggling with theme. I’m really looking forward to seeing you getting to grips with it!

  14. Casandra Merritt says

    Interesting. I have been studying theme lately, and it is one of the lesser talked about aspects of storytelling, but I have always found it the most interesting. It’s funny how some people, when asked what a story is about, will give you a character answer (a Hobbit), a plot answer (destroying the One Ring), or more of a theme answer (good vs. evil).

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      This is a great observation actually. I feel like there are some deep insights here. I’m going to mull on this.

  15. I see a new book coming…

  16. What’s really funny is that after reading a good part of Anatomy of Story and listening to your character series, I came up with a theory like this where every idea boils down to one of those three elements and that we should try to balance them as best we can and I would say to my writer friends “Now, this is just my own theory, but I think it’s pretty solid.” Now I can say, “Check out this post from Weiland!”
    As for what I think I’m strong in, I would say it’s a tie between theme and character, but with the downside of being pretty much helpless when it comes to plot. It’s pretty hard for me to work on either theme/character without immediately applying it to the other.
    And as side note, my dad and I believe that everyone has gifts that reflect Christ’s kingship (getting things done), priesthood (sensitivity towards others and appealing), and/or prophetic role (talented thinker and concerned with truth), which I figured corresponded with plot, character, and theme, respectively. Dad tells me I’m prophetic-priestly, which makes me more convinced I’m a theme-character heavy writer which ALSO influences my taste in stories (gotta love those character studies).

  17. Excellent points here. You’ve helped me figure out what I need to do to polish my latest wip.

  18. I’ve been meaning to thank you for quite a while, and in the interim your insights have only become more profound, well organized, and helpful. For the craft of writing fiction, you are simply the best. THANK YOU.

  19. Victoria Kazarian says

    Thank you for this post. I find that character is the first thing that comes to me when writing, then my plot springs from what’s going on with the character. Their internal conflict leads me to an external conflict to spin a plot around. I’m not great at creating a plot by itself.

    Regarding theme, I was taught in writing classes that it will “just make itself known.” What’s been really helpful to me is teaching high school English! My students have to learn how to identify theme, so in order to teach them, I’ve had to learn. I’ve been able to see how great writers weave theme into their writing. I’m learning as much as my students, as I pick up ideas for my own writing.

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Yes! It has definitely been my personal experience that the one who learns the most is always the teacher. :p

  20. I think all my story ideas arise from either a character or plot in equal measure, but immediately after the initial rush, I focus on the main character – which POV is best to tell the story – which character has the most at stake. From there, the I brainstorm the plot to get out of the character what I want – what I dreamed in my story vision. I have to admit, sometimes it’s just a feeling I have that I want to telepathically share with the reader and the feeling might boil down to a theme or rather, what the theme boiled down to in me. However, I fell like this is the hardest piece to accomplish. I think I’m best at plots, they come naturally. Characters are a tiny bit harder. Theme… theme is dragged over the finish line by the others.
    I definitely like the approach you suggest above and will endeavor achieve it.

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Characters usually come first for me, but usually more than one character. The plot is found in the dynamic between the characters–so plot and character often arrive simultaneously for me.

  21. Oh, again a fantastic post!

    For me, characters come first. Somehow all my story ideas start with two characters interacting with each other. It makes me curious, about who they are, how they met each other, why they are in this situation. Theme always follows very quickly.

    Plot was always very difficult for me, until i found your books. I started to look at the plot as a integral part of the story, rather than a seperate layer. And yes, then I found the whole circle of plot-character-theme. They shape each other.

    Plot is still my least intuitive part, but I am not scared of it anymore.

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Hah. See my comment above, in reply to KC. This is exactly how most of my stories come to me as well.

  22. Richard Huckle says

    Having just finished listening to & rereading your podcast about the 3 elements Plot, Character & Theme, I have staggered off the playing field to be assessed by the team doctor for concussion.
    In the background, the song The Windmills of Your Mind gently plays.

    While trying to learn the art of writing, I have somehow lost the enjoyment of writing.
    A few mornings ago, I woke up with an idea & decided to return to my laptop.
    18 months leave of absence has saddened me?

  23. This is a cool post, KM. I like it.

  24. George Lloyd says

    T – the story teller
    H – hierarchy of Plot and Character
    E – every story needs one
    M – manifests its self from Plot and Character
    E – embodiment of Plot and Character source
    S – solidifies the union of Plot and Character and Theme

  25. Great article! I’ve long felt that theme had to be revealed in the character arc, but I’ve never seen such a concise explanation of how to do this.

  26. Theme comes first, then characters, then plot. This means when I rewrite/edit, I change plot first, then tweak main characters, and if I changed the theme I’d say it’s a different book. Everything is subservient to theme.

  27. Casandra Merritt says

    The same theme can appear differently when explored by different messages. Message and theme are not the same thing, but they certainly seem to work together. Maybe some stories put more emphasis on message. Let’s say I wrote a book with the theme of identity, or more clearly, never forget who you are. I explore it through the message of rising against tyrannical governments (or all who force you to compromise your true identity). If tyrannical government was the issue of the day, people might skip over the theme and focus on the message, as what I was trying to say. Current problems and issues might have an impact on how people interpret the “meaning” of your story. It’s also possible that some stories might present their themes more clearly than others.

  28. I agree; a well-crafted work of fiction must be equal parts character, plot & theme. Characters always show up first for me, in a situation but not necessarily with a plot. Plot has been my weakest point. But when I figure out what my theme is, the story tends to fall into place. Knowing the overall theme or purpose of my character’s story often relieves the anxiety of creating conflict on the way to the ending. Thanks for the post!

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Purpose is huge. When you know what a character wants, you’ve got a shortcut to all three ingredients: plot, character, and theme.

  29. Your use of a “circle” to illustrate the thought process of the Big 3 is perfect. It’s like you were looking inside of my head. Great Article!

  30. I am planning a party for my parents 50th anniversary. I told my brother we need a theme…Scotland. Now the party has characters, theme and the 50 yr plot! LOL

  31. Dennis Michael Montgomery says

    Whoo Boy! This is a lot to think about. I’m going to have to read and/or listen to this more than once.

    Is possible for a story to have more than one theme? Is it possible for a story to have a hierarchy of themes?

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Hierarchy of themes is a better way to think of it than multiple themes. Ultimately everything should point to a single unifying idea. More on that next week!

  32. My theme is leadership. Halfway through my character is put into such a position, and I know that that is necessary for plot, theme and character, but I’m stuck because I need a reason for him to want–or at least, remotely agree with–his new authority.
    I guess that means my problem is in motivation. Is it normal/okay/bad for a character to change his goal in the middle of the story?

  33. Casandra Merritt says

    Thanks! I like your posts on theme. It is so hard to find information on it on the internet.

  34. Jack Bannon says

    When the two lovers Plot and Character conceive, Story is the child that is born and theme is how they teach it to live.

  35. jonathan wallis says

    Your step 5 nailed what I have never been to articulate as my process – it’s like being somewhere between pantsing and plotting. Discovery writing but with some entrances and exits on the narrative highway. thanks 🙂

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Yes, I’ve come to believe all writers pants and all writers plot. We just rearrange the pieces of the process to suit our individual proclivities.

  36. Terrific article. This helps me to understand themes so much better. Thank you.

  37. I look forward to all your meditations on theme! Your boobs and websites have been instrumental in improving my storytelling, and I also love helping out about all the nitty gritty. 😊

    • K.M. Weiland | @KMWeiland says

      Thanks! Theme is always a fun topic to explore. I’ve definitely got a few most posts up my sleeve.

  38. i absolutely adore this article, it’s just what i needed! thank you!

    i love your books, too, so i thought now to finally listen to your podcast. you have a lovely voice so i’d enjoy listening to the podcast, but now there’s an echo and it is hard to hear you–as i’m not a native speaker, i have trouble making out words that don’t come out clear. the echo in the audio might be corrected with some fluffy blankets and pillows next to you while you record. recording in a walk-in closet in the midst of all the clothes might be a good idea, for example. or just pile those blankets and pillows on hard surfaces and get comfy!

    but this is just a selfish request, as it for my own enjoyment of your lovely voice and words.

    as always, i’ll wait eagerly for your next blog post. and i think i’ll go buy that book on characters now…

  39. You should write a book or workbook about theme! That would be something I would enjoy and want to read!

  40. Stasia Black says

    So, so good. I’ve adored your work for years, am a regular listener to the podcast, have read several of your books and am always recommending them to my friend. And I’m always coming back for more. Your clearly articulated ideas never fail to help me when I’m in a muddle and I’m so grateful for all you do.

  41. You have such a clear way of explaining things. My WIP was imagined, planned in my head then written before knowing anything about writing. Apparently this is wrong. Oops. I’d been told I wrote well. So I decided to write fiction because the story was there wanting to be written. Then in the process of heeding a few writers who read the appalling mess I’d written and studying up about writing to fix the first draft, some things were very clear. The theme was easily recognized though not stated. It was the truth the main protagonist needed to understand to transform himself. This was his character journey throughout the story, on top of the plot unfolding. The plot challenged him to think solutions. Naturally, the theme is not even put into words in his mind. His reactions to plot teach him he has to change. He has to stop reacting. It is difficult for him. In the end he decides to employ the same solution he already planned, without any thought, but it is no longer done in desperation. It is done with knowledge and control. This is the proviso, the other aspect of the theme. I liked the expression hierarchy of themes. It helped me come to grips with my antagonist who seemed to defy the theme. Actually when his back story came out it was obvious his life mirrored the theme but in a different way. The illustrations of the triangle and circle for the three aspects of plot, character and theme fit what a writer hopes to achieve. They unite writing if they work together. If they don’t the story is broken, somehow.

  42. Felicia R Johnson says

    Character comes most easily for me. Plot is difficult. I tend to get lost in the middle of the story when I’m working on the the plot or timeline and don’t know where to go next. As for theme, I’d never thought much about it. It just seemed such an elusive subject!

  43. Dear KM: I’ve been reading so many of your posts and am overdue for a thank you. I really appreciate the guidance you offer. I’ve been able to read your posts, learn the concepts and then apply them to my work in progress. Thank you!

Trackbacks

  1. […] Themes are inherent in the “organizing principle” (as Truby calls it) of a story. However there are two ways to do this, one of which I do not believe anyone has identified before with as much specificity as I will attempt, though K. M. Weiland has a very excellent discussion of themes here. […]

  2. […] elements intertwine to build your story and they all impact each other. K.M. Weiland discusses the triangle of plot, character, and theme; Cindy Sproles talks cliffhangers, and Jami Gold explores what makes a story […]

  3. […] week, I offered a bird’s eye view of how I see theme. That post was the first of quite a few discussions on theme, which I hope to posit this year. […]

  4. […] with good reason. Not only is your character’s arc central to all your other story choices—plot and theme foremost among them—character arc can also seem like one of the most daunting parts of story. Mostly this is because […]

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