A great story, then, is not about providing information, though it can certainly inform — a great story invites an expansion of understanding, a self-transcendence. More than that, it plants the seed for it and makes it impossible to do anything but grow a new understanding — of the world, of our place in it, of ourselves, of some subtle or monumental aspect of existence.
I think this applies to both fiction writing and non-fiction. I can see how we can even tell great stories through business writing. Resorting to expanded PR pitches misses opportunities to make more meaningful connections, even though that is the easy option. This is especially when there is more emphasis, too much emphasis, on quantity than quality.
Popova’s essay is also the script for a great animated video which was produced for the Future of Storytelling Summit in 2014:
You can read the rest of Popova’s essay on Brain Pickings:
https://www.brainpickings.org/2014/09/09/wisdom-in-the-age-of-information/
Image credit: Pixabay
What do you think?