When I started writing as a profession, there were a few things I sucked at and I decided to get good. One was plot and story. The other was theme and metaphor.
I feel likeI got good at both, although I still struggle to invent my own plots sometimes. (Since I'm not currently writing fiction, I don't get much practice.)
Someday I'd like to teach what I've learned.
One trick for delicately laying out a metaphor is use of the thesaurus. There are so many connotations within word meanings, that it's easy to take the two concepts you're metaphorizing, and construct a sentence full of words that embody *both concepts*. You can even do it subtly enough that the reader won't know the second meaning until you reveal it.
Start by asking: What aspects does Object A share with Concept B? What words can describe aspects of BOTH accurately?
Right now I'm wanting to set up some metaphors relating both birth and resurrection to my client's memoir. So I'm looking for words to describe Christ's resurrection that can also fit a birth, and tying that with some feminine themes that I'm contrasting with the toxically masculine antagonists. There's quite a bit of room within those four points to draw an interesting picture.
I'll set it up with this sentence, and then pull the trigger connecting it to the rebirth of my protagonist in the next chapter.
As I pour through the thesaurus, I'm rejecting the majority of words than can only apply to one of these two things. I jot down the words that apply to both, and then I'll refine the result by choosing from the best.
Riddles and dream symbols work exactly the same way. If you want to get good at metaphor and theme, learn to analyse your own dreams. (A SUPER good book from a Jungian perspective is called Radical Dreaming by John Goldhammer.)
These traits are built in to how our minds operate. You'll quickly start to notice your symbols come out in your own writing. Your own subconscious can do most of the work for you, dropping those themes and symbols in, and then you can recognize them and draw them out with intention on the next draft.
This practice has deeply enriched my enjoyment of media created by others. Even if you're not a writer, it's worth learning.
Sometimes creators have no idea what they're doing, and suck at this. But many who don't know this skill can still create some really amazing metaphors that hold through the whole story, entirely on accident. (Gretel & Hansel is one, where the creators indicated they had no such intentions, but it's a feminist story about uncompensated emotional labor!)
Other times, I can tell the creator knows exactly what they're doing, and I can admire the perfection with which they can tell two (or more!) stories in parallel – the literal story, and the symbolic message – that few will recognize consciously. If you learn these skills, you'll understand the secret code, and it makes for a much richer watching/reading/listening experience.
Anyway, I don't feel like I wrote this well. haha. Writing about this stuff is itself work, but it's fun, especially since I can't speak on con panels anymore. I wish I had more time and energy to do more posts like this.
#WriteTip #AmWriting #WritersCoffeeClub
