Persuasive stories are memorable and compelling

When we experience a great story, we feel ourselves become part of that world momentarily—and in the best, we may come back to our own world “transformed.” Communications scholar Melanie Green, who has studied the theory of narrative transportation extensively, identified three aspects of narrative transportation, including:

• The opportunity to enter the emotional world of a character — when we’re transported into a story, we often feel the strong emotions the characters do. That can sometimes result even in temporary physiological changes in our own bodies. Effective narrative transportation activates strong cognitive and emotional empathy versus just trying to trigger compassion.
• Compelling characters who we identify with — we need to include details and experiences that allow us to connect our own identities or lives with the characters featured in your story. This isn’t necessarily just representation, which of course is helpful, but gives us opportunity to identify with people unlike us if we experience moments where our lived experiences at some point align with those of the story.
• Vivid detail — when we experience a story, we create that world in our minds and tie it into the schemas our brains create to process the information that comes in. Tying detail into our senses, especially strong visual language, is very effective in generating transportation effects.

It’s worth working toward narrative transportation, because when people experience it, they are more likely to take the perspective of a central character and less likely to argue or disagree with the central point of the story.

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