Write to the Point: Crafting Great Stories (5 Ps of Story Prep, Pt. 1)
Posted on 03 June 2010 by Victoria St. George
The tortoise and the hare … the boy who cried “wolf” … the ant and the grasshopper … If you remember these fables from your childhood, you’ll know that Aesop had it right: When it comes to getting your message across to readers, the stories you tell often make your point better than any outline, framework or dry fact.
The apt story makes you and your non-fiction book, as well as your live presentations, more meaningful and memorable to your audience. Be sure you include a moving or matter-of-fact retelling of a real event, a metaphor or allegory, or an example of your ideas in action.
But how do you choose, create, and then write stories to suit the message you’re burning to share?
Not long ago, I pinpointed the five Ps of story preparation—five critical pieces to help you come up with stories that will make you and your material memorable. They are purpose, passion, perspective, personalization, and pruning.
Today, let’s review the first two.
1. Identify Your Story’s Purpose
What’s your reason for telling this story? Is it an illustration of a point? A credibility piece? A moment of humor to lighten the mood? A break during a long section of dense information? A testimonial to the effectiveness of your work? Something that reveals who you are and helps to build a relationship with your reader?
You must always know the purpose for any story you use. It will help you find and shape your material for maximum impact. (Incidentally, in our mini-course for developing a knockout book proposal or writing plan, we devoted a couple of days to the identification and development of stories as a crucial element of support for your book. You can get that course for free via email over 30 days or, if you just can’t wait a whole month to receive all 30 of our writing prompts, then you can purchase the whole report, compiled all in one PDF and ready for instant download.)
2. Tell It With Passion
People may forget what you say, but they’ll always remember how you make them feel. What emotional impact do you want this story to have? An ah-ha, a smile, a tear, a surprise? Disgust with a situation, or admiration of an accomplishment? Should they say, “I never thought of that before,” or “Oh, now I get it”?
Objective stories can make factual points, but memorable stories share emotions. Know the emotion you are aiming to generate, and it will shape the stories you choose and the way you write them.
When you write any story, you must strive to impart emotion through your words. This doesn’t mean you have to get all romance-novel-ripped-bodice-over-the-top, but for your stories to have impact, your readers need to care about what’s going to happen—and you have to use words that engage their hearts as well as their minds.
Whatever the purpose of your story, find a passion and emotion you can attach to it.
To be continued … ‘Write Like a Rock Star’ is part two in this series.)
* * * * *
Want to be notified by email whenever we post something new? Join our mailing list.
You might also like to read:
- Write Non-fiction Stories That Move Readers to Action
- Writing About Haiti’s 7.0 Earthquake
- Non-fiction Book Proposals: What Agents & Editors Really Want
- Book Proposal Results: What Publishers Say
- Roman Polanski’s ‘Ghost Writer’: Dead On
No responses yet. You could be the first!
Leave a Response
-
Connect
