No Spoilers, Please! Why Curiosity Makes Us Patient
The place of maximum curiosity – the zone in which storytellers play – is when people think they have some idea but aren’t quite sure. Brain scans reveal that curiosity begins as a little kick in the brain’s reward system: we crave to know the answer, or what happens next in the story,
Will Storr • The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human, and How to Tell Them Better
Curiosity drives an urgent desire for answers. But it can also prompt more patience, enabling people to savor moments of discovery.
We want surprise and suspense, but we also crave order and closure. The artistry of the mystery box is in the balance: give away too much and we’re bored, give away too little and we’re lost.