Every day we interact with objects, places and sensations that affect the way we think and feel. This can be used to the writer’s advantage by planting symbols in the reader’s path to reinforce a specific message, feeling or idea.
Look at the setting and the character’s state of mind, and then think about what you want the reader to see. Is there a descriptive symbol or two that works naturally within the scene to help foreshadow an event or theme, or create insight into the character’s emotional plight?
In Nature:
Animals gathering in herds or packs
Seasonal cycles
Life/death cycle
North Star position
Sunrise/set
Phases of the moon…
In Society:
Technology (computers, databases)
Meetings
Rules/laws
Lines/queues
Bill payment
Streets, intersections…
These are just a few examples of things one might associate with Order/Organization. Some are more powerful than others. A filing cabinet is a strong symbol of organization and likely will not require reinforcement. However, a single name tag may not foreshadow order/organization on its own. Let the story’s tone decide if one strong symbol or several smaller ones work the best.
Symbolism is a universal language that can add great depth and meaning to your story.
So you can reap the full benefit of this powerful tool, we’ve expanded the entire collection by 70% and integrated it into our online library at One Stop For Writers. Each entry comes with a long list of ideas for symbols and motifs, and we’ve included popular symbolism examples from literature and movies, as well. These entries have also been cross-referenced for easy searchability across all our other thesauri. To see a free sample of the updated Symbolism and Motif Thesaurus along with our other collections, pop on over and register at One Stop.
Angela is a writing coach, international speaker, and bestselling author who loves to travel, teach, empower writers, and pay-it-forward. She also is a founder of One Stop For Writers, a portal to powerful, innovative tools to help writers elevate their storytelling.
Thanks everyone for the great comments! Nice to see some new faces here–I really apreciate all the recent follows.
Glad this one helps! And Robyn, *blush blush* thanks so much!
Angela
I SO LOVE YOU AND YOUR AWESOME BLOG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And your blog is in part two of my post on using our senses on Monday.
Symbolism is important in writing, and using the right words can affect a lot of things. These are great lists–many of the things listed are subjects I wouldn’t have thought of!
Thanks so much for following my blog, by the way. 🙂
I really like this post. I, as a writer, have a weakness that I’m so concentrated on plot and character, that I often miss symbolism and setting… It is nice to have something like this to remind me about these assets.
I’ll definitely be adding this to my blog roll.
Josh Musser
http://joshmusser.wordpress.com/
Ah, organization. Something I’m still working on, lol. Great list as always.
I love these entries, they’re always so thought provoking, and really challenge me to look for better ways to express ideas in my own writing. Thank you!
I LOVE THIS BLOG
This is a great post as I’m a lover of symbolism, and I use several things from this list in my current wip. You gave me some new ideas too, so thank you. 🙂
Thanks! Terrific, as always.
Have a good weekend,
Karen 🙂
Some great ideas! And wow, your lists are long. I’m so impressed!