Using Nature to Enhance Your Theme

Shannon Dittemore is the author of the Angel Eyes trilogy. She has an overactive imagination and a passion for truth. Her lifelong journey to combine the two is responsible for a stint at Portland Bible College, performances with local theater companies, and a focus on youth and young adult ministry. For more about Shan, check out her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

It's FRIDAY again! Confetti and cupcakes for everyone! Of course, you'll have to go in search of your own, but still, we made it to the end of the week and I think treats are in order.

On that note, I need to announce the winner of last week's giveaway. To refresh, we're giving away a set of Jenny Lundquist's The Princess in the Opal Mask and its sequel The Opal Crown. Drum roll, everyone . . . 

And the winner is Tiffany! 

Now, I know what you're thinking. There are a zillion Tiffanys out there, but that's the only name that was provided on the entry. I went ahead and emailed this specific Tiffany, so if it's you PUH-LEASE email me back!

Okay, now that that's all done, let's talk writing.

I thought I'd just drag you all into my head for a bit if that's okay. I've been thinking a lot about one of my favorite stories. William Shakespeare's Hamlet. It's not a novel, but a play and there's much to be learned from plays.

My sophomore English teacher is the one who got me hooked on Hamlet. He spent one of his lessons talking about the garden theme that's woven through the story. In Hamlet's first soliloquy he says of the world, "'Tis an unweeded garden that grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature possess it merely."

Throughout the production, several characters join Hamlet in the colorful use of garden terminology. From Ophelia to Laertes, from the Queen to the Ghost of Hamlet's father, the concept of the garden is hard to miss once it's been pointed out.

And it was this one teacher and this one lesson that really opened my eyes to nature as a theme in literature. It's changed how I view books, but more importantly, it's changed how I view nature and the creation around me.

In his book, On Writing, Stephen King makes the point that we owe it to ourselves and the books we write to decide what exactly it's about. Does it have a theme? Have we made that clear to the reader? And I wonder as you view your manuscript, have you considered using nature to enhance your theme?

I don't think it's ideal to start with a theme and work from there, but I do think that once you've penned your story, it's beneficial to consider how you can use the world around your characters to sharpen your message.

What are you talking about, Shannon?

I'm glad you asked.

When we think of nature, we think of forests and oceans, we think of mountains and sunsets and all the things that were created for us to enjoy. But we also think of seasons and the inevitable dying of everything that grows. And in that death, we often find new life. We think of cycles. We think of change. We think of incremental growth and maturity. We think of seeds planted and watered and we think of weeds that can squeeze the life out of the things that are meant to nourish us.

All are such glorious themes in the hand of an author! The applications of such themes and the uses of them in your writing can help to paint a picture that will stay with a reader and bring into focus THAT THING you're trying to say.

Anyway. That's what's been going through my head lately. How about you guys?

What do you think about using nature to drive home your themes? What books come to mind when you consider this concept?