Does Your Theme Contain Character, Conflict, Resolution?
by Nick Vernon
For a theme to work and the story, which will revolve around
the theme, it has to contain three things:
· Character
· Conflict
· Resolution
What’s the reason for this?
If your theme doesn’t contain these three essential elements,
then you won’t be writing a proper short story. It might turn
out to be an essay instead.
Because without:
1) Characters
You can’t achieve emotional depth. Readers become engrossed in
stories because of the characters in them. They either become
the character (sympathize), or read about an interesting person
(empathize).
Emotional depth is achieved when readers use their imagination
and senses and/or experiences to live the story through the
characters.
2) Conflict
Your story will be boring. Why? Without conflict, something to
stir things up, nothing happens. And a story, in which nothing
happens, is one not worth writing about.
Your characters don’t lead carefree lives. Well, not in the
instance you are writing about them. In that part of their
lives they are faced with a problem. They want something and
can’t get it because of the conflict, which is preventing them
to do so.
And it’s that conflict and the struggle the characters has to
undergo that keeps us readers interested and in suspense. Will
the character succeed or won’t he? And when is this all going
to happen? And how is it all going to happen?
3) Resolution
Something that starts has to finish, one way or another.
Once you have created great characters, which the reader will
come to care about, and you have placed them in conflict, that
conflict at the end of your story has to be resolved. The
characters will achieve their goals or they won’t.
That doesn’t matter.
You can end your story as you please and as it suits your story
- but you have to end it. Ending the story means resolving the
conflict.
Does your theme contain character, conflict,
resolution?
by Nick Vernon
NewNovelist
Novel
writing software that practically does the job for you.
Provides the structure, prompts and resources to get your
novel or short story out of your head and onto the paper.
Check it out:
http://www.writersreign.co.uk/nnart.html
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Theme Contain Character, Conflict,
Resolution?
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