The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human and How to Tell Them Better

Almost all perception is based on the detection of change’ says the neuroscientist Professor Sophie Scott.

‘There is a natural inclination to resolve information gaps,’ wrote Loewenstein, ‘even for questions of no importance.’

The more context we learn about a mystery, the more anxious we become to solve it.

modern nations are principally defined by the stories we tell about our collective selves: our victories and defeats; our heroes and foes; our distinctive values and ways of being, all of which are encoded in the tales we tell and enjoy.

The place of maximum curiosity – the zone in which storytellers play – is when people think they have some idea but aren’t quite sure.

Unexpected change makes us curious, and curious is how we should feel in the opening movements of an effective story.

Leo Tolstoy’s brilliant assertion that ‘a real work of art destroys, in the consciousness of the receiver, the separation between himself and the artist.’

According to Bergen, we start modelling words as soon as we start reading them. We don’t wait until we get to the end of the sentence. This means the order in which writers place their words matters. This is perhaps why transitive construction – Jane gave a Kitten to her Dad – is more effective than the ditransitive – Jane gave her Dad a kitten.

to make vivid scenes, three specific qualities of an object should be described,

We develop this skill at around the age of four. It’s then that we become story-ready; equipped to understand the logic of narrative.