Yet, perhaps the most common problem with theme happens when the writer tries to consciously superimpose one by putting in monologues, sermons, or long passages that teach preach how we should be living our lives and what the meaning of the story is. The theme is an argument about how we should be living our lives, and just like with prose, the theme is most effective when you show it more than tell it. Luckily, when we apply it to theme, it need not get too blurry. To learn more about the “Show, don’t Tell” rule, including when to break it, check out “ Breaking Writing Rules Write: ‘Show, don’t Tell.’”īut showing extends beyond the prose itself, and sometimes when we extend it beyond that, it can make the definitions a little more blurry. Of course, telling isn’t always bad, and there is a time and place for it.
Now the audience has a specific image and experience of Emily being tired. She rubbed her eyes–mascara gritted against her skin–then flung her arm over her face to block out the light.
She fell into her bed, and her shoes blackened the covers. Yawning, Emily dragged her backpack on the way to her bedroom. It’s vague and general.īut when we show that Emily is tired, it becomes more concrete and specific. Is she physically tired from running a marathon? Is she tired in the sense she needs sleep? Or is she tired because she’s bored? We don’t know. And we don’t really understand what kind of tired she is. When a writer simply labels and explains what happens ( tells the story), it’s almost always less effective. This is often done by imagery (aka, appealing to the senses). In short, it means to dramatize what is happening in a scene, in a way that allows the reader to experience the story, instead of just reading as a spectator. The “Show, don’t Tell” rule usually relates to the actual prose of a story.
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Then we’ll follow up with why and how to show your theme.
Let’s briefly review the “Show, don’t Tell” writing rule and go over why telling theme alone is rarely effective. In fact, one of the most common problems that come up with theme, happens because the writer tells the theme more than shows it. So, when you learn how to show your theme, you are well on your way to writing a stronger one–which means writing a stronger story. Many of us are familiar with the “Show, don’t Tell” writing rule, but few of us realize how vital it is to writing our stories’ themes.
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