Set the Tone with Symbolism

Several years ago my church restructured the way we connect with each other outside of the main worship services. Their goal was to provide a culture to help us grow closer to one another by offering small group settings with wider opportunities to best fit our schedule. We've since settled on a pattern that is meeting the needs of our members well and have kept this basic format ever since.

Unfortunately, we've also kept the first, one-off image we used at the beginning:

At the time, I talked with our assistant pastor who was our main graphics guy about the disconnect between the goal and the image—it’s beautiful and atmospheric, but where's the "group" here? The whole point of incorporating these gatherings into our church culture is to avoid the "I am an island" mentality we have too often as American Christians.

Since then, our assistant pastor has moved on to an amazing ministry in another part of the country, and this image just ended up being easy to use whenever a new semester has come around. Lord willing, these next few weeks will be the last time we use a picture that sends out such an incongruous message.

Taking advantage of Symbolism in Storytelling

While I already intuitively knew the power of using images to highlight a theme, it was driven even more deeply home for me at a recent conference. Zena Dell Lowe is on a mission to help Jesus's people become quality storytellers and she was passionate to help those of us in her audience understand the power we wield as we entertain our readers and viewers.

Her keynote for us was filled with example after example of how the world's great filmmakers understand the subtle art of symbolic images. Whether it was a delicate purple flower or a dead fish next to a face-down WWII soldier, the clips she shared made it clear the smallest details can serve to heighten the message we hope to convey.

What does this look like for an author?

As I sat listening to Zena, my mind went back to an editing project I'd just finished up. While I still don't know how the author will wrap up the story (since they have yet to be written), her opening chapters had pulled me into the predicament of her heroine. Outside circumstances were hemming her in so severely she had lost hope for any kind of a free or happy future.

Then it struck me; what if the opening scene somehow included this sense of being trapped? The main character lives on a farm; animals get caught. It would add a dark note, but they have a burnt-out barn that had housed their precious milk cows until recently, perhaps she could notice a bone of one of the victims they had been unable to rescue?

Since this isn't my story I couldn't pick an option and run with it, but I did fire off an email to the author ASAP. A small shift or addition plugged into that opening scene would prepare the reader for the overall sense of the story and heighten our joy at her escape into freedom.

Symbolism can come in any number of forms

Think of the Amazon logo. Do they know the power of symbol? Speed, happiness, a brighter future; all in two simple strokes. My own logo took me several years to settle on, but once I saw the nautilus swirl I knew it was the right one for me. A simple Fibonacci sequence representing a creature known from deep in the fossil record and still alive in the ocean today.

If you spend a few minutes in a picture book section you'll see the abundant use of symbols. Strong lines and colors usually mark a book meant for boys. Soft colors and lines are common in sleepy bedtime stories. The iconic books by Richard Scarry are filled with bright, clean colors and the animals themselves symbolize the rich diversity and shared experience of people from around the world.

Pretty much any element in your book that represents something bigger than its actual purpose is a symbol. Like an animated children's movie, every detail is there because you chose to add it. The set pieces you mention can tell us about the characters, the plot, and the overarching worldview you are communicating.

Even nonfiction books use symbolism

If you take a look at the covers of top-selling nonfiction books you will see lots of objects. Unless an item is an example of the subject at hand, each of these images is giving us a symbol. A clock for time management, a flourishing tree for an abundant life, the possibilities are endless.

Many of the most effective nonfiction books take advantage of analogies to help their ideas stick in our heads. Think of the Boundaries series by Townsend and Cloud. Each concept they share fits in with their overarching framework of property lines, gates, and fences. It's hugely effective at showing how vital their teachings are for a healthy life.

Jesus himself used symbolism constantly.

We give them a special name, but that's what a parable is: an everyday object or situation used as a symbol for something far greater.

Whether we are writing a gritty thriller or a self-help book, it serves us well to consciously utilize the power of symbols to heighten our message. What object or situation would help you establish the concept of your book from Page 1?