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Guidelines for writing Poems, Stories and Tales

How do I include a powerful theme in my story without making it blatantly obvious?

Asked by: Wendy Schwarz

All you have to do is write it into your story, and never expressly state it. Not you, as the author, not the characters, and not the narrator within. Just have it be there and let people figure it out for themselves.

How do you incorporate a theme in a story?

How to Develop a Theme for Your Story

  1. Seek Universal Themes. …
  2. Choose a Theme That Sticks With Your Reader. …
  3. Start With Another Story Element. …
  4. Create an Outline. …
  5. Weave Your Theme Throughout the Narrative. …
  6. Include Multiple Themes. …
  7. Don’t Limit Yourself.

What 3 things should you look at to determine the theme of a story?

Ask these three questions to find your theme.

  • What is the story about? This is the plot of the story.
  • What is the meaning behind the story? This is usually an abstract result of his actions.
  • What is the lesson? This is a statement about the human condition.

How do you write a unique theme?

3 Thoughts on How to Write Unique Themes

  1. Look for Your Character’s Theme. Theme is always rooted in character. …
  2. Look for Your Theme. Your characters will give you specific manifestations of the themes that are most pertinent to your plot. …
  3. Ground Familiar Themes in Fresh Milieus.

How do you make a non cliche theme?

Avoiding clichéd themes: Know your genre

  1. A science fiction story might warn readers about the dangers of tampering with nature or of acquiring too much knowledge.
  2. A crime story might set out to convince the reader that crime does not pay.
  3. A horror story might demonstrate that bad things happen to bad people.

How do most writers reveal themes in their stories?

Themes are suggested through the characters. The main character usually illustrates the most important theme of the story. A good way to get at this theme is to ask yourself the question, what does the main character learn in the course of the story? Every story has a theme, but not every story has a moral.

What are three ways authors reveal the theme?

By employing literary tools the author embeds the theme or meaning into separate elements that make up the totality of the literary piece. Some of the more common tools of the author’s craft are: character development, setting, mood, plot, point of view, figurative language, allegory, symbolism, and irony.

How do you make a story not cringe?

6 Tips to Avoid and Fix Bad Writing



  1. Read Out Loud. This is the first step to checking your piece for awkward writing: read it out loud. …
  2. Shorten Your Sentences. One of the best ways to avoid awkward writing is to take out every unnecessary word, phrase, and sentence. …
  3. Be Specific. …
  4. Re-Word. …
  5. Tighten. …
  6. Delete.

How do you make a story not cheesy?

10 Tips to Avoid Clichés in Writing

  1. Avoid Stolen or Borrowed Tales.
  2. Resist The Lure of the Sensational.
  3. Turn a Stereotype on its Head.
  4. Tell the Story Only You Can Tell.
  5. Keep it Real by Taking it Slow.
  6. Deliver Your Story From Circumstantial Cliché
  7. Elevate the Ordinary.
  8. Rescue Gratuitous Scenes From Melodramatic Action.

What are some good clichés?

Examples of Clichés in Everyday Language

  • read between the lines.
  • play your cards right.
  • it’s an uphill battle.
  • better safe than sorry.
  • you can’t judge a book by its cover.
  • bring to the table.
  • low-hanging fruit.
  • the grass is always greener on the other side.

What is the most annoying cliché?

Top 10 Most Annoying Cliches

  • 8. ” I’m Not Even Joking”
  • 7. ” With All Due Respect”
  • 6. ” Giving It 110%”
  • 5. ” The Fact of the Matter”
  • 4. ” Yeah, No”
  • “You Know What I Mean?”
  • 2. ” At the End of the Day”
  • 1. ” Turned Around and Said”

What is the most overused cliché?

Popular Clichés



  • All that glitters isn’t gold.
  • Don’t get your knickers in a twist.
  • All for one, and one for all.
  • Kiss and make up.
  • He has his tail between his legs.
  • And they all lived happily ever after.
  • Cat got your tongue?
  • Read between the lines.

How do I find a cliché?

A cliché is an expression that was once innovative but has lost its novelty due to overuse. Take the phrase “as red as a rose” for example—it is a universal descriptor for the color red that is now commonplace and unoriginal.

How do you find good words?

10 Tips for Finding the Right Words

  1. Be Patient. In revising, if the right word is not at hand, run a search, sort, select process through your mind to see if you can find it. …
  2. Wear Out Your Dictionary. …
  3. Recognize Connotations. …
  4. Put Away Your Thesaurus. …
  5. Listen. …
  6. Delete Pet Words. …
  7. Eliminate the Wrong Words. …
  8. Be True.

When should you avoid clichés?

When you’re writing on a more formal level, it’s better to try to avoid using clichés. They tend to annoy people, especially if they’re overused, and they may even create an impression of laziness or a lack of careful thought.

What are 5 examples of cliché?

Here are some common examples of cliché in English:



  • Let’s touch base.
  • The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
  • Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.
  • I’m like a kid in a candy store.
  • I lost track of time.
  • Roses are red, violets are blue…
  • Time heals all wounds.
  • We’re not laughing at you, we’re laughing with you.

What are overused words or phrases?

The very definition of cliché – a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays lack of original thought – means you should rarely, if ever, use them in your writing. And yet, they become clichés for a reason.

What is a cliché for kids?

A cliché or cliche is an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has become overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being trite or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or novel.

Can a person be a cliché?

Cliche definition

A person or character whose behavior is predictable or superficial. An expression or idea that has become trite. The definition of a cliché is an often repeated or used phrase or statement that has been used so much it has become trite and kind of meaningless.



How do you spell cliché in spelling bee?

What are some other forms of cliché?

  1. cliche (alternate spelling)
  2. clichés (plural)
  3. clichéd.

How do you spell Cleshay?

Cliche, also spelled cliché, is a 19th century borrowed word from the French which refers to a saying or expression that has been so overused that it has become boring and unoriginal.

What’s the opposite of cliché?

tried-and-true, unimaginative, uninspired, unoriginal.

What does Unhackneyed mean?

fresh, original



Definition of unhackneyed
: not hackneyed : fresh, original a unique, unhackneyed writing style.

What does Uncliched mean?

not hackneyed or unoriginal

Definition of unclichéd
: not hackneyed or unoriginal : not clichéd an unclichéd performance unclichéd language.