Yesterday I went to buy some walking shoes.
And I ended up spending $2000. And that's not counting the shoes.
Now, did that opening get your attention?
Sure it did. It sucked you in. And the reason you hear that strange sucking sound is because I didn't start off the article as most people do. Most people slide logically into an article. But you can use the power of the story. And not just the story, but the middle of the story. Because there, smack bang in the middle lies the drama—the part that really captivates your reader.
So how do you know what to pick as you unfold your story?
The answer is actually quite mundane—even, counter-intuitive. To get that drama, you don't have to pick anything particularly exciting. You just have to make it exciting for me.
So let's say we went back into my world of yesterday
Were the purchase of the shoes the most important point?
Or was it the purchase of a draughtsman's table?
Perhaps it could be Italian food we had for dinner. Or just about anything.
In a story, you have at least three-four exciting points and any one of them can rise to the surface. Yes, any point is exciting. What really matters, is how you bring a factor of excitement to the story. As you explain the details, the simple fact becomes interesting.
And master storytellers know this to be true
They know that even a mundane story can be brought to life in the way you recount it. In a presentation at TED.com, speaker, Hans Rosling tells a seemingly mundane story of a washing machine. And Hans has many options when telling this story, but he chooses to talk about the ‘button-driven miracle' of the machine. And he stays with that angle to get your attention.
And here's how it unfolds…
“I was only four years old when I saw my mother load a washing machine for the very first time in her life. That was a great day for my mother. My mother and father had been saving money for years to be able to buy that machine.
And the first day it was going to be used, even Grandma was invited to see the machine. And Grandma was even more excited. Throughout her life, she had been heating water with firewood, and she had hand washed laundry for seven children. And now she was going to watch electricity do that work.
My mother carefully opened the door, and she loaded the laundry into the machine, like this. And then, when she closed the door, Grandma said, “No, no, no, no. Let me, let me push the button.” And Grandma pushed the button, and she said, “Oh, fantastic. I want to see this. Give me a chair. Give me a chair. I want to see it.”
And she sat down in front of the machine, and she watched the entire washing program. She was mesmerised. To my grandmother, the washing machine was a miracle.”
So what's the interesting part in this story?
It could have been that the clothes came out extremely clean. It could have been the sound and how they were captivated by the sound of the machine. It could have been the changeover from hard labour to just a button-driven miracle. Hans chose the button-driven miracle. But as you can see, he could have chosen anything as long as he used emotions to drive home the story.
You can feel the excitement, the awe, as Hans tells the story. And it's these sets of emotions that keep the drama going and the heart pulsating.
Which brings us to this bizarre set of conclusions
1) That you can pick any story or any subset of a story to get the drama going. And you often find this drama somewhere in the middle of your story.
2) The most important factor is one of enthusiasm. Bringing out the fear, the surprise—all of those emotions are what keeps the reader engaged.
One of the best ways to get the reader's attention is to tell a story. But easily the best way to get that story raging ahead is to pick something—anything from the middle of the story and use it to start your article.
And as you work down your way through your story, you'll find at least two three spots where you can harvest great emotion or unusual drama. Now that you have that emotion/drama, it's just a matter of putting that stuff at the top and drawing your reader in.
It's a beginning no reader can resist.
Hey Sean,
I recently told my (very few) readers that I was going to be more straightforward on my blog articles and less personal and to my disbelief they told me that’s why they actually liked my site. (because it felt personal)
Now the only concern I have with this, is that many times I end up talking about what wasn’t the main subject of the article on the comment threads.
How to avoid this when writing a side-story?
Thanks in advance,
Sergio
Hey Sergio, Comment threads always meander off topic. It’s the nature of comment threads. So don’t worry about it, is my take. And yeah, my favorite blogs/articles always have a personal voice to them. Otherwise, I might as well be reading … well, the Mundane Borer. Best wishes, a fellow Sean-o-phile.
Can you send me a link, so I can see what you mean by side story?
Sure Sean,
The main idea behind that post was to build some buzz on the readers (I don’t have many, just a few)
I started my article saying that I felt I was writing a lot about me and not about my marketing experiences.
I was trying to channel the post to the FREE offerings and yet everyone replied with the topic of not taking the personal part out of the blog.
That’s what I mean on “how to avoid a side story, become the main story on the post?”
Thanks in advance!
Sergio
I’ll be back. 😉
I’ve been struggling with writing the synopsis of a novel. This article is hugely applicable to the main challenge, namely how to make it interesting. Not just some “and then… and then… and then…” recitation of events. Thanks, Sean!
I start off one of my speeches with this opening line:
“9 years 8 months and 16 days ago I was in a police cell in Zimbabwe, not knowing if or when I would ever get out. I was a white Zimbabwean farmer illegally detained for refusing to surrender my farm”.
It gets attention.
I use stories from my life in Africa in my blog and emails.
That sure is a winner!
WOW!!!!!! Yup, that’s a grabber!
🙂
Peter,
What a winning hook…just reading your paragraph and my mind fills with thoughs…like how good it is to be in my country (Canada) where there stability and justice…the list could go on.
Don’t envy that experience of yours but it’s your winning story now!
Great article, Sean. For 3 years, I wrote parenting articles in a mag. I discovered your trick of starting with a true story — about a parent or a child. But I hadn’t teased out the points that you make explicit — finding several points of drama and emotion and then starting in the middle at one of these points.
In the body of the article I would detail out a principle of parenting and often include some stats that provided evidence for the principle.
Thanks, Sean!
You’re welcome.
Love the way you do it – then explain it and expand on the point! Great article and, as you point out, pretty simple concept that can be used to great effect. Keep up the great work – yours is one of only a very few blogs I make the time to read – because you make it worth it
Keep delivering the value and thanks for your amazing generosity!
Thanks Mike 🙂 Usually one point is what keeps the attention of the reader, rather than 10001 ways to do something. 🙂 One inch wide, one mile deep.
I was just reading an older article on copyblogger that talked about the 2/3 rds rule.
Which basically says take your story, split it up into three pieces, then take the top third out, because this is where the true story begins.
It’s like in film, when they start on the actor running away from something, in total fear, holding on to a package, panting furiously, and clearly trying to get away from… something. It’s a much more interesting “hook” if they told all the lead up, then got to the chase.
Great demonstration, I’ll be including this in a round up I’m writing for another site 🙂 Be sure to look out for the link tomorrow morning 🙂