200 Simple themes to inspire your writing
Themes are simple. Themes are complex, but themes are the stitching in the fabric of our understanding. Most people start to comprehend writing on the most basic level before they get to the complexities, and the easiest way to do that is by saying, “Oh, this is a love story,” or “This is a revenge story,” or many other simple themes. As writers we are always looking for themes that guide us. To that end, here are 200 very simple themes that I hope will inspire you to see the direction of your writing, or to clarify something in your mind about your next chapter. Either way, they are very interesting to read. Look through all of them. If you feel like we missed any, please put them in the comment below.
- Acceptance – Belonging, inclusion, embracing differences
- Accountability – Responsibility, liability, answering for actions
- Achievement – Accomplishment, success, status, recognition
- Adolescence – Youth, puberty, coming of age, angst
- Adultery – Infidelity, cheating, dishonesty in marriage
- Adventure – Exploration, journey, quest, thrill-seeking
- Aging – Growing old, maturity, facing mortality, wisdom
- Ambition – Aspiration, drive, motivation, goals
- Anger – Rage, resentment, indignation, wrath
- Animals – Nature, wilderness, connection to living creatures
- Anxiety – Worry, distress, nerves, angst
- Appearance – Beauty, vanity, illusion, deception
- Art – Creation, imagination, expression, passion
- Balance – Harmony, moderation, stability
- Bravery – Courage, heroism, valor, daring
- Change – Transition, growth, decay, transformation
- Chaos – Disorder, turbulence, uncertainty, confusion
- Childhood – Innocence, imagination, discovery, play
- Communication – Expression, speech, connection, understanding
- Community – Society, unity, togetherness, belonging
- Competition – Drive, rivalry, ambition, winning/losing
- Confidence – Self-assurance, skill, empowerment
- Conformity – Compliance, obedience, peer pressure
- Corruption – Immorality, vice, scandal, decadence
- Courage – Bravery, valor, heroism, conviction
- Creativity – Imagination, originality, vision, inspiration
- Curiosity – Interest, wonder, speculation, inquiry
- Darkness – Evil, fear, ignorance, gloom, despair
- Death – Loss, grief, mourning, mortality, killing
- Decay – Decline, deterioration, erosion, corruption
- Deception – Lies, fraud, trickery, dishonesty, illusion
- Desire – Longing, lust, enthusiasm, appetite
- Destruction – Ruin, apocalypse, devastation, downfall
- Determination – Resolve, perseverance, motivation, focus
- Disappointment – Disenchantment, disillusionment, despair
- Disaster – Catastrophe, calamity, tragedy, devastation
- Discipline – Restraint, control, order, authority, punishment
- Discovery – Revelation, learning, insight, invention
- Disease – Illness, plague, sickness, infection, affliction
- Doubt – Uncertainty, ambiguity, confusion, indecision
- Dreams – Aspirations, visions, goals, imagination
- Duty – Responsibility, purpose, destiny, calling
- Earth – Planet, nature, environment, home
- Emotion – Feelings, sentiment, fervor, zeal
- Emptiness – Void, vacuum, longing, isolation
- Enemy – Adversary, foe, rival, nemesis
- Enlightenment – Revelation, realization, insight, awakening
- Escape – Exit, liberation, freedom, release
- Eternity – Infinity, permanence, timelessness, continuum
- Evil – Immorality, malevolence, malice, corruption
- Excitement – Exhilaration, thrill, stimulation, adventure
- Exploration – Discovery, investigation, quest, mission
- Failure – Defeat, inadequacy, disappointment, underachievement
- Fairness – Justice, impartiality, objectivity
- Faith – Belief, religion, trust, devotion
- Fame – Reputation, stardom, distinction, renown
- Family – Kinship, ancestry, relatives, marriage
- Fate – Destiny, fortune, future, inevitability
- Fate vs. Free Will – The struggle between destiny, fate, and free choice,
- Fear – Dread, anxiety, terror, panic, phobia
- Folly – Foolishness, stupidity, absurdity, ridiculousness
- Forgiveness – Clemency, mercy, absolution, compassion
- Freedom – Liberty, independence, autonomy, emancipation
- Friendship – Camaraderie, intimacy, trust, alliance
- Future – Destiny, fate, vision, innovation
- Gender – Sex, sexuality, identity, stereotypes
- Greed – Desire, excess, hoarding, materialism
- Grief – Sorrow, anguish, heartache, bereavement
- Growth – Progress, advancement, expansion, maturity
- Guilt – Regret, remorse, shame, self-recrimination
- Happiness – Joy, satisfaction, pleasure, bliss
- Hate – Loathing, spite, rage, aversion
- Heart – Love, emotion, courage, compassion
- Heroism – Courage, valor, adventurism, mythic stature
- Home – Origin, family, comfort, nostalgia
- Hope – Optimism, faith, expectation, ambition
- Horror – Terror, fear, disgust, nightmare
- Humanity – Mankind, human nature, society, compassion
- Humor – Comedy, amusement, absurdity, wit
- Idealism – Perfection, optimism, purity, nobility
- Identity – Individuality, character, personality, sense of self
- Illusion – Deception, delusion, façade, trickery
- Imagination – Creativity, vision, originality, dreams
- Imitation – Mimicry, pretense, fakery, conformity
- Immorality – Corruption, depravity, vice, degeneracy
- Imprisonment – Confinement, detention, restriction, enslavement
- Independence – Autonomy, self-determination, freedom
- Injustice – Unfairness, bigotry, prejudice, oppression
- Innocence – Purity, naïveté, simplicity, trust
- Insanity – Madness, mania, delusion, derangement
- Inspiration – Stimulation, creativity, motivation, enthusiasm
- Intimacy – Closeness, sexuality, vulnerability, affection
- Intrigue – Mystery, deception, trickery, complexity
- Isolation – Seclusion, loneliness, alienation, solitude
- Jealousy – Envy, suspicion, resentment, covetousness
- Journey – Adventure, passage, exploration, voyage
- Joy – Delight, elation, bliss, ecstasy
- Judgment – Discernment, criticism, condemnation
- Justice – Fairness, righteousness, revenge, retribution
- Kindness – Compassion, care, empathy, benevolence
- Knowledge – Learning, enlightenment, insight, understanding
- Language – Communication, speech, translation, literacy
- Laughter – Comedy, humor, absurdity, irony
- Law – Justice, authority, ethics, principles
- Leadership – Authority, guidance, inspiration, charisma
- Legacy – Heritage, history, tradition, inheritance
- Leisure – Relaxation, recreation, entertainment
- Life – Existence, consciousness, vitality, creation
- Limitations – Restrictions, constraints, inadequacy
- Loneliness – Isolation, longing, solitude, melancholy
- Loss – Bereavement, deprivation, tragedy, defeat
- Love – Affection, romance, devotion, infatuation
- Loyalty – Fidelity, commitment, allegiance, dedication
- Lust – Desire, passion, temptation, sensuality
- Madness – Insanity, irrationality, psychosis, dementia
- Masculinity – Traits traditionally associated with men like strength, stoicism, aggression, and dominance.
- Magic – Enchantment, mysticism, fantasy, illusion
- Memory – Remembrance, nostalgia, recall, recognition
- Mercy – Clemency, forgiveness, compassion, grace
- Misery – Anguish, heartache, dejection, despair
- Mistakes – Errors, regrets, flaws, poor judgment
- Monsters – Beasts, demons, ogres, savages
- Morality – Ethics, principles, values, integrity
- Motherhood – Nurturing, fertility, matriarchy, creation
- Mourning – Grief, bereavement, lamentation, solemnity
- Music – Harmony, sound, rhythm, melody
- Mystery – Secrets, puzzles, unknowns, wonders
- Myth – Legend, folklore, fantasy, allegory
- Nature – Environment, animals, earth, wilderness
- Nostalgia – Remembrance, sentimentality, wistfulness
- Obedience – Duty, acquiescence, conformity, compliance
- Oblivion – Emptiness, obscurity, nothingness, obliviousness
- Oppression – Injustice, tyranny, persecution, cruelty
- Optimism – Hope, belief, confidence, enthusiasm
- Outsider – Foreigner, stranger, outcast, pariah
- Paranoia – Irrationality, fear, suspicion, delusion
- Passion – Ardor, intensity, lust, enthusiasm
- Past – History, nostalgia, memory, origins
- Perfection – Ideal, purity, precision, excellence
- Perseverance – Persistence, determination, tenacity, patience
- Perspective – Viewpoint, observation, discernment
- Power – Control, influence, dominance, authority
- Pride – Arrogance, hubris, self-importance, dignity
- Progress – Advancement, development, evolution
- Purpose – Meaning, destiny, conviction, goal
- Reality – Existence, truth, actuality, authenticity
- Rebirth – Reawakening, revival, renewal, transformation
- Redemption – Salvation, deliverance, absolution, atonement
- Reflection – Contemplation, rumination, meditation
- Regret – Sorrow, remorse, repentance, guilt
- Rejection – Refusal, denial, exclusion, abandonment
- Relationships – Connections, bonds, interactions
- Religion – Faith, spirituality, worship, doctrine
- Remorse – Contrition, regret, guilt, repentance
- Reputation – Image, prestige, status, legacy
- Revenge – Vengeance, retaliation, retribution
- Revolution – Rebellion, upheaval, dissent, change
- Ridicule – Mockery, derision, scorn, contempt
- Romance – Courtship, passion, intimacy, flirtation
- Rules – Order, law, guidelines, principles
- Sacrifice – Selflessness, offering, martyrdom
- Safety – Security, protection, trust, assurance
- Satire – Parody, irony, wit, criticism, humor
- Secrets – Mysteries, intrigues, conspiracies, revelations
- Seduction – Temptation, enticement, allurement, attraction
- Self – Ego, individuality, identity, consciousness
- Selfishness – Greed, self-absorption, egotism
- Sexuality – Sensuality, eroticism, desire, libido
- Shame – Humiliation, embarrassment, disgrace, modesty
- Silence – Quiet, stillness, muteness, emptiness
- Simplicity – Plainness, clarity, minimalism, modesty
- Solitude – Isolation, privacy, loneliness, introspection
- Soul – Spirit, psyche, essence, being
- Space – Universe, cosmos, astronomy, dimensions
- Strength – Power, resilience, vigor, energy
- Struggle – Adversity, hardship, exertion, strife
- Stupidity – Ignorance, denseness, foolishness, idiocy
- Success – Triumph, prosperity, achievement, victory
- Suffering – Agony, pain, torment, anguish
- Superstition – Myth, magic, spirituality, occult
- Surrealism – Absurdity, eccentricity, weirdness, dreaminess
- Survival – Endurance, persistence, resilience, grit
- Technology – Innovation, advancement, engineering
- Time – Past, present, future, eternity, history
- Transformation – Change, metamorphosis, growth
- Travel – Journey, adventure, excursion, exploration
- Treachery – Betrayal, disloyalty, treason, deceit
- Trust – Dependability, confidence, faith, credence
- Truth – Reality, honesty, accuracy, authenticity
- Uncertainty – Ambiguity, confusion, doubt, turmoil
- Understanding – Insight, empathy, compassion, wisdom
- Vengeance – Revenge, retribution, reprisal, justice
- Violence – Aggression, brutality, cruelty, bloodshed
- Vulnerability – Fragility, victimization, susceptibility
- War – Combat, violence, invasion, conquest
- Weakness – Frailty, feebleness, inadequacy, flaws
- Will – Determination, purpose, resolve, intent
- Wisdom – Experience, understanding, enlightenment
- Worry – Anxiety, tension, angst, unease
- Youth – Adolescence, vibrancy, innocence, immaturity
If you have changes to recommend or just a theme to add, please leave a comment below. We read EVERY comment!
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