June 3, 2024
What if I told you there is a storytelling secret that can turn any average moment into the most captivating story?
In this article, you’ll learn what that secret is and three techniques on how to apply it to your stories.
Let me explain by showing you two examples.
Same story, each 20 seconds long. But listen carefully.
Example 1:
“Sarah heard the postman at the door. So she went to the mailbox to pick up a letter. It was a letter from her company. In this letter, her company informed her that she had lost her job.”
Example 2:
“This moment changed everything for Sarah. She was at home when she heard the postman at the door. She rushed to the mailbox, reached inside, and pulled out a letter. Immediately, her heart started racing. She thought, ‘Oh, this can’t be good. Is this the moment?’
Slowly, she tore the envelope open and started reading. Seconds later, she collapsed on the floor, tears running down her face. Her company had laid her off.”
So why is the second example so much more interesting?
Because we want to know:
The secret to great storytelling is to raise questions in your audience’s mind.
And there are three simple techniques to raise questions in your story.
The anticipation hook is a sentence you say before your story to get your listeners excited about the story.
You can say, for example:
Just a tiny sentence will raise a big question in your listeners’ minds. They will want to know what that moment was.
Shortly into your story, share what the main character wants to accomplish. What are their goals?
Example:
The moment you share that at the beginning of the story, your audience will want to know, did it work out?
Did you finish the marathon and end up as a role model for your kids?
You can also raise questions by sharing some of the character’s thoughts.
What is the character thinking about how the situation will turn out?
Share some of their hopes, dreams, and fears.
For example:
I could say, “Oh, this presentation will be the best presentation of my life. Everyone will love it. They’ll sign me a check with 50k on the spot.”
See? Now, as a listener, you’re wondering, is this going to happen?
Raising questions is the secret storytelling technique to keeping your listeners engaged throughout the entire story.
But there are a few other storytelling techniques that you need to know if you want to tell great stories.
For that, you can check out my book, The StorySelling Method, or this next article in which I share my favorite techniques to spice up your stories.
Enjoy!
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