Stories: Why We Create

Have you ever realized how stories are a part of everything we do? We love to hear them, we tell them to others, and we dream about them. Stories come in all shapes, sizes, and genres. Growing up, my mom and dad would read to my four siblings and me every night before bed. My mom loved the classics and picture books. She introduced us to so many beautiful stories. My dad, on the other hand, took us on wild adventures across space and through the mines of Moria. Today, my entire family loves stories. If someone gets a new book, we all get in line to have a turn to read it so we can talk about it together.

So what makes stories so powerful and why do they impact us so deeply? Well, one reason is that we remember them more easily than we remember a list of facts. We've been hard-wired by our Creator to tell stories. When I call friends or family, they tell me stories of what's been happening in their lives, and I tell them stories about my own. Stories form a connection between our own experiences and the experiences of someone else. This is just as true in a fictional story as in real life. We are drawn into a story because we become connected to the character and the challenges and joys that they encounter. We're also curious creatures. We want to know what happens, and so we continue to read, watch, or listen.

This concept of connection is intimately related to why stories impact us so deeply. A well-written story and characters can touch a reader's heart. We often see something in a character that we can relate to. Either we have similar challenges or flaws, or we've been through similar circumstances.

A story is beautiful because it gives the reader and audience time to interact with, confront, and wrestle with the ideas and beliefs that an author is trying to convey. A proposition or statement of facts is logical—black and white. Either you accept it or you don’t. However, stories explore life with all the mistakes, sacrifices, and love that comes with them. Stories engage our hearts and our minds. They may demand an answer from us, but they may also ask us to consider something. The best stories are those that leave us with a powerful thought long after we've read the final sentence.

I'm so glad that God gave us a love of storytelling. I believe we've each been commissioned to share stories, first His story, and then our own. Ours is just a piece of the greater story that He is writing.

Why do I write? I write for the little child living in a dark place, not so that she can escape it, but so that she can go and return, carrying back with her a flicker of hope that the best is yet to come and that good always triumphs over evil. I write for those my own age, who are growing up in a world consumed by self, to remind them that the best life is that which is lived for a greater purpose than oneself. I write because through my words, I can tell others what I care about and why. It's an invitation to come and consider and to be a part of the story.

So, what's important for you to communicate to others? Why do you tell stories?