I’m not a trained novelist. Most of my writing education comes from learning how to conduct a research study and how to write for academic journals and peer-reviewed papers. I learned a lot from reading Stephen King’s book, “On Writing – A Memoir of the Craft” (2000). King wrote a great deal about using character arcs, plotlines and persistent themes

Think of themes as a consistent message the story seems to draw upon or to teach the reader. Themes prevail in most, if not all, of King’s novels. Christopher Ortiz (2023) explained some of the themes present in King’s novels:

In “The Shining,” the Overlook Hotel becomes a vessel for the characters’ fears, feeding off their vulnerabilities.

The fear of isolation and cabin fever is a palpable horror in “Misery,” where a captive author is at the mercy of his obsessive fan.

“It” embodies the fear of childhood and the monsters that lurk in the shadows of one’s past and present.

“Cujo” amplifies the fear of losing control, epitomized by a beloved family pet turned vicious and deadly.

In “Pet Sematary,” the fear of mortality and the unsettling prospect of death’s aftermath looms large.

In Project Sidekick, I found myself writing about a few persistent themes without knowing it. If you asked people who’ve already read Project Sidekick, you might get differing answers. Here are some of the themes I think show up repeatedly in the novel.

Servitude: The HEROES in Project Sidekick, especially Phineas often say that they are not heroes. Phineas describes himself twice as “someone else’s weapon.” Phineas and others see themselves as being stuck in a lifestyle of service to others. Phineas, Nan, Pete, and Charlie have all concluded that they won’t be able to lead a normal life, no matter how hard they try. The Lotus gives up her baby because she knows this. Charlie tries to go home to Australia to be with his people and to lead a normal life but is ultimately called back into service. Pete, the only superhero who people know exists, tries to retire, but is called back into service. Nan has a son and a husband but ultimately chooses to serve over being with her family. Not because she wants to, but because she recognizes the inevitability of the lifestyle that comes with being a Temple Guardian.

Self-Sacrifice: Along with the inevitable lifestyle of the hero or villain, comes the ultimate price. Most of the heroes and villains know they’ll die in the service of their masters. Some of the heroes and villains pay this price in the book but attempt to leave the world for the better or the worse (depending on their intentions as a hero or villain). The heroes who die attempt to leave the world a better place, the villains try to make things worse.

Humanity: All the heroes and villains in Project Sidekick (except Zoran Radmila) show their humanity in different ways. They’re not all-powerful, omnipotent beings who lack empathy. All of them have hopes and dreams and even passions. Phineas loves music and hates swearing. Pete is a surfer. Charlie, Pete, Phineas and the soldiers at Jericho love to watch Kung-Fu movies. Toward the end, we even get a glimpse into the humanity of True Zero, the villain that controls all the world’s technology after the Great Confluence. It is revealed that Dmitri (True Zero) is just a man. A broken, simple man with great power who was under the control of a master (Zoran Radmila). In the end, we see True Zero and the Chameleon’s humanity exposed.

If you’ve read Project Sidekick, what themes did you identify?