tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-565840532665040475.post6924096505911505344..comments2024-02-28T07:48:21.115+00:00Comments on Storyslingers: Considering Theme & MotifJennifer K. Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07480797030717122446noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-565840532665040475.post-27806819764828805072013-05-05T14:23:32.150+01:002013-05-05T14:23:32.150+01:00Yes, I think you're right. This then creates o...Yes, I think you're right. This then creates organic motifs, less forced and therefore more real. I like the idea of training oneself into noticing signs/ being aware of when you're picking up on them and what they mean to you. This is probably a good exercise for anyone, not just writers. Zomzarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14727512225540337363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-565840532665040475.post-83239364454430677892013-05-05T11:00:53.574+01:002013-05-05T11:00:53.574+01:00I suspect there's a lot of feeling, rather tha...I suspect there's a lot of feeling, rather than thinking, that goes into motif and I don't believe any of us are short on emotional intelligence. Maybe the work is in training yourself to notice when you interpret signs, when you see connotations and what they mean to you. Maybe if you can do that then they'll bubble up to the surface and make themselves known when you write - then you won't have to struggle trying to work out the best symbols for your thoughts and falling short, they'll come looking for you. <br /><br />When you include signs that seem appropriate to you there's a kind of honesty that goes into that and I think it's important to connecting with your reader and communicating. Trying to be more clever or crafty about it might be counterproductive, perhaps?James Broomfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16355571062153669909noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-565840532665040475.post-21954754648257143312013-05-04T20:36:42.189+01:002013-05-04T20:36:42.189+01:00Great post. I agree that motif is a good and trick...Great post. I agree that motif is a good and tricky skill. I really want to learn and master this skill. Some of my favourite authors handle motif well, and those motifs span through their works. Murakami's books often feature cats, women with exquisite ears, and other things I've momentarily forgotten. <br />I think both theme and motif are best handled in the later stages, and to probably forget both in the first draft, unless you're super skilled. <br />I'm reading the latest Granta right now, and most of those stories are packed with motif. Those stories are doing several things at once and it blows my mind. How did these people get so good? Is it luck? Or is there hours of hard graft and lots of unseen and failed experiments under every successful motif? <br />I think it's all semiotics. I'm just not clever enough to understand what will best symbolise my thoughts/ the most effective icons/ symbols/ motifs to use that will most effectively show the idea I'm trying to convey. Zomzarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14727512225540337363noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-565840532665040475.post-67853538812496501672013-04-26T18:48:05.292+01:002013-04-26T18:48:05.292+01:00Fantastic post, James. I often think about theme (...Fantastic post, James. I often think about theme (and to a lesser degree, motif) when writing and reading. It's one of those topics that never gets dull because there's always so much to uncover.<br /><br />One thing I found with my own stories after a lot of years writing is an emerging theme in my themes (Ha!). I often tend towards similar themes, and they can be traced to certain points in my life where one or another emotion, worry or attitude was prominent. But I never noticed the themes until I took a handful of stories and looked closely at what they were saying—all the good stuff you mention that happens between the lines and underneath all the words. It was a cool revelation, and quite telling to me about what I really care about (and what bothers me most!). Have you found many common themes in your own stories, particularly ones that span years and go back to your earlier stuff?<br /><br />Here's the thing, I sometimes find motif trickier. I was reading a blog a few months back where someone was talking about one of their favourite authors. The author is well established with a large bibliography spanning many years— and the blogger wrote a post celebrating the moment when they realised the motif that was running through not just the one book, but the entire body of their fav author's work. That's a feat I'd love to be able to pull off, but I imagine it's difficult and you need to be quite artful to do it.<br /><br />Or maybe it's one of those things you shouldn't think about too much. I find theme way easier than motif because theme automatically makes itself known at some point before I finish a story, at which point I can draw it out a little bit further to be more clear. But I think you need to be a bit more crafty with motif, in the same way you need to be crafty with word choice and consistent imagery/metaphors, etc. It could just be that I'm way more comfortable with first drafts than the finer tuning stages of building a story. :)<br /><br />Anyway, I'm not sure if I've come to a conclusion, but I wanted to say great post, and I liked the examples you chose.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com