Home
>
Writing
>
Is The Theme Running Throughout The Story?

Is The Theme Running Throughout The Story?

Creative Writing Tips ?

It's no use coming up with a theme and not using it. Short stories are about a character or characters and about one situation or happening in those characters' lives.

By concentrating on that one thing, our stories are focused. You will need to focus to maintain a level of intensity and sticking to the theme enables us to do that.

Let me give you an example?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario One

Let's say your story is about a young man (main character) who is being harassed (one situation) by the school bully (secondary character.) Let's place the setting in grade school.

Now if we focus on that single happening and in our story say?.

What started the bullying
What the main character felt, confronted with this problem
What the main character did to overcome this problem
If the main character won or lost against the bully?

Then we'll be focusing only on that incident which is what our story is about.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scenario Two

Now if we took that situation further and in our story said that this character grew up and was bullied in high school and then later by a colleague?

That will be listing three incidences, which will weaken our story because we are not focusing.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Remember a short story is short.

We don't have too much leeway to develop too many things so we have to be selective with what we choose to concentrate on. Short stories work best when they span over a short period of time.

Like in scenario one, this incident might span over a couple of days or a week, where in the second scenario, it spans over a number of years. The shorter the time span the more intense the story.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Your theme should begin at the beginning, run through the middle and conclude in the end. So let's put a theme to the first scenario?

'Strength Comes From Within And In The End Prevails.'

How can I have this theme running throughout my story?

Initially I will portray my main character as a weak individual. But I will excuse his weakness, by saying perhaps that?

"He comes from a closely knit, loving family and initially doesn't know how to deal with such a conflict."

As my story progresses, I will gradually show his inner strength and I will do this through incidences, which will show his maturity, like?

? He helps out by caring for his younger siblings and contributes with the housework.

And

? I can show him cutting the neighbours' lawns or delivering newspapers before school to show that he contributes economically too.

If I do this, my ending (when he wins against the bully) will be believable because I have developed his inner strength. My theme would have run its course.

Is your theme running throughout the story?

About The Author

Besides his passion for writing, Nick Vernon runs an online gift site where you will find gift information, articles and readers' funny stories. Visit http://www.we-recommend.com

http://www.we-recommend.com

kitchen deep cleaning Deerfield ..

In The News:

X Square Robot unveils Wall-OSS open-source AI model that helps robots adapt to unpredictable real-world tasks beyond narrow scenarios.

Airport workers report surge in fake lost luggage claims as scammers retrieve discarded baggage tags containing passenger names and travel information.

Unlike robotaxi competitors, Tensor focuses on consumer-owned self-driving cars that adapt to highways and urban roads with full redundancy systems for safety.

Medicare scams cost $54 billion in 2024 as fraudsters target beneficiaries with fake calls demanding payments and personal information to steal benefits.

Scammers create fake Evite invitations that mimic legitimate event emails, requiring users to verify senders and use antivirus software for protection.

The new Apple Watch hypertension feature passively monitors blood pressure patterns over 30 days using sensors to detect chronic high blood pressure signs.

Chrome extension spyware disguised as a free VPN service highlights security risks after it captured private browsing data from trusted sites.

New research shows how fatty acids in cooking oil can safely dissolve and recover silver from circuit boards without harmful chemicals or environmental damage.

The Fox News AI newsletter gives you information on the latest AI technology advancements, and about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Anthropic investigates alarming AI abuse case where hacker automated entire cybercrime campaign using Claude, stealing sensitive data from defense and healthcare firms.

TikTok, Meta and YouTube restrict Charlie Kirk shooting videos with age gates and warnings while X faces criticism for allowing continued circulation.

Cybercriminals use fake troubleshooting websites to trick Mac users into running terminal commands that install Shamos malware through ClickFix tactics.

San Francisco startup Fable launches Showrunner, an AI platform dubbed the 'Netflix of AI' that generates animated episodes from text descriptions with Amazon support.

Apple raised iPhone prices for some models despite receiving tariff relief from President Donald Trump, with the new lineup starting at $799 for the base model.

A two-story 3D concrete printed home in Western Australia demonstrates faster construction methods that could reshape American housing amid rising costs.

Credit scores remain important during retirement for insurance rates and housing applications, while seniors become prime targets for identity theft and financial scams.

Scammers now send unexpected packages with QR codes that redirect victims to fraudulent websites or download malicious software to steal sensitive information.

Meeting AI tools record private conversations alongside work discussions, creating privacy risks that can be managed with proper settings and awareness.

Hotel privacy concerns are valid but rare, with methods to detect hidden tech using smartphone flashlights, mirror tests and scanning apps.

Improve your Wi-Fi speed and reliability with 10 simple router optimization tips that don't require special apps or expensive subscriptions.

A Columbia University breach exposed names, Social Security numbers and academic records of nearly 869,000 people, with notifications beginning in August.

Rental car drivers use AI-powered apps like Proofr to protect themselves from unfair damage fees as major companies deploy automated inspection tools.

Fox News' AI newsletter brings you the latest on technology advancements around artificial intelligence.

OnTrac data breach between April 13-15, 2025, exposed personal information of over 40,000 people including Social Security numbers and medical records.