Sometimes I get comments that are just incredible. They deserve a bigger audience than being tucked under a blog post that, ultimately, was not as good as comment. In comments on my post about the secret to blogging, I asked J. M. Bell about storytelling. Here’s his response/comment (bold emphasis is mine):

Not only do I believe that storytelling is useful in most situations but I also practice it.

Bear in mind that a story doesn’t have strict requirements in terms of length. You can tell a decent, helpful, even convincing one during an elevator ride.

I’d like to point out that we most often think of stories as ‘fiction’ – which they don’t have to be. You can present non-fiction in story form, which plenty of marketers, psychologists and authors of self-help books do.

In fact, our verbal circuits are wired to turn everything into a story.

We expect the teller to deliver the goods in a timely manner. So when you launch into a meandering narrative, people will ask, ‘What are you driving at?/What are you trying to say?/So what’s your point?’

Don’t forget that storytelling principles underpin everyday language. An analogy is a narrative device. Exaggeration, repetition, extrapolation, all of these are verbal, narrative tactics to get a point across.

The paramount weapon in a storyteller’s arsenal is the ability to find simplicity and direction in a confusing environment.

Just look at this military PowerPoint slide.

There’s no direction. No clear focus. This is a visual riot – information run amok. There’s too much of it and, whether it means anything or not, meaning is heavily diluted.

My point is, whenever you communicate verbally, the next story is just around the corner. You just can’t help it. But in order to resonate, the story has to be relevant. Relevant to your audience or readership.

Most Lady Gaga fans won’t know or care about Orlando di Lasso — but if she told them di Lasso was an amazing composer they should listen to, millions of them would Google the name, find recordings of his music and start buying CDs or downloading MP3 files.

All this to say that the teller’s identity, and context, also matter. Certain messages require authority. I’m no expert on lung cancer, so if I recommend that one of my friends stop smoking, my concern is legitimate, but I am not an authoritative voice. I may have an informed opinion but it’s not an expert opinion.

To get around this, people use a tactic I like to call ‘borrowed credibility,’ which is similar to the argument from authority. The audience may know you’re not an expert, but show them you’ve done your homework – through storytelling – and they start to connect with you.

Stories are a good way to communicate that you did the reading and that your opinions are neither baseless nor eccentric.

The best book I ever read on this subject was Made to Stick by Chip & Dan Heath.

Thank you, J.M. for your comment. I have become a fan of yours. I hope others will do the same.