"The telling of stories creates the real world," -Alberto Manguel
Remember, that this is all my opinion. But also remember, if you disagree:
;)
Stories are essential to human life and survival. Sure, people might think that it's natural selection, survival of the fittest stuff that keeps us around, but really, it's stories that enrich our lives and allow us to keep moving on as a species.
Aside from the melodrama, stories still are a crucial part of our history and culture - less specifically, writing is - but stories, they are far superior to poetry. So, if you don't get anything else out of this post, remember this:
stories > poetry
And here are four reasons why.
1. Storytelling is more elusive and drawn out
Something powerful about stories that poetry doesn't have is that we are able to push across subtle themes by utilizing the vehicle we all know - through people, through emotions, through events. Poetry, however, most times has to be stated or hinted at, which isn't always as effective. Sure, we've read a lot of poems - ones we like or love, surely, but what do we ask most people when getting to know them? (Hint: the answer is "What's your favorite book?") Because the ultimate power in stories is limitless. Stories stay with us forever. They are imprinted into our minds and hearts with the gritty characters and perfect delivery. Stories teach us, they guide us.
Something powerful about stories that poetry doesn't have is that we are able to push across subtle themes by utilizing the vehicle we all know - through people, through emotions, through events. Poetry, however, most times has to be stated or hinted at, which isn't always as effective. Sure, we've read a lot of poems - ones we like or love, surely, but what do we ask most people when getting to know them? (Hint: the answer is "What's your favorite book?") Because the ultimate power in stories is limitless. Stories stay with us forever. They are imprinted into our minds and hearts with the gritty characters and perfect delivery. Stories teach us, they guide us.
2. It takes more loyalty and perseverance to write a novel
I hate to break it to you, but it doesn't take you years to write poems. I'm not saying that writing poetry is easy, but people have no idea how much time and grueling effort that goes into creating something from nothing.
I hate to break it to you, but it doesn't take you years to write poems. I'm not saying that writing poetry is easy, but people have no idea how much time and grueling effort that goes into creating something from nothing.
I've heard many writers - who mostly write poetry, that they've had a few story ideas, and they've even gone as far as to start writing. Many of them express shame that they have never been able to stick with a novel because it's such a grueling project. This shows that it takes much more dedication to write a 100,000 word novel with characters and settings and themes and everything that goes along with it. Writing a poem and writing a novel are like writing a sentence compared to a ten page paper. Yes, I am aware that some people just aren't storytellers - and some people are natural poets, but the amount of dedication required to start and finish a story is mountainous. Unbreakably strong ties are made between an author and their characters and even the story itself - incomparable to the cathartic ramblings of poetry. Writing a story is like childbirth, and nothing is comparable to the function that gives life to all.
3. Stories are what defines us as a race and society
Civilizations are not remembered by the average worker bee. They are not remembered by the man who went to school, followed the rules, got married, got a job, saved up for retirement, and died content. Civilizations are known for their art - for the stories they told. The stories of the Bible tell us of everything from the Babylonian empire to the reign of the Romans. Homer's Iliad and Odyssey defined Ancient Greece for us. Shakespeare is the head of the Renaissance of writers. When all else slips away, the stories of the people remain. The written word is eternal and powerful.
Moving on, poetry only occasionally makes it into the collection of stories, and even then, it is usually a story in poem form. Stories, everything from folklore to scripts to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, are intensely studied and make for the building blocks for cultures and society.
Moving on, poetry only occasionally makes it into the collection of stories, and even then, it is usually a story in poem form. Stories, everything from folklore to scripts to The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, are intensely studied and make for the building blocks for cultures and society.
4. Storytelling is a part of human nature
If you were a human child, which, I assume you were since you're reading this, you probably played with some kind of toys. I don't mean to be stereotypical, but if you were a girl, you probably had baby dolls or Barbies or dress-up or played house. If you were a boy, you probably had Nerf guns and action figures and race cars. Even video games are immersing oneself, creating a character for yourself and going through a mission. But what do all of these things have in common? Why are they related to storytelling? Because all of these mundane, childhood activities have to do with one thing: playing pretend. Pretending that you are a professional chef, pretending that you were the only fairy that could save the fairy land, pretending you were fighting evil aliens off with your best friends. The pretending opportunities are endless. And by pretending, you are creating characters and worlds and a story from which there is none. Without realizing it, every child is a storyteller at heart, but it is the novelists who just take this task along with them into adulthood. Storytelling is innate and crucial to our survival.
If you were a human child, which, I assume you were since you're reading this, you probably played with some kind of toys. I don't mean to be stereotypical, but if you were a girl, you probably had baby dolls or Barbies or dress-up or played house. If you were a boy, you probably had Nerf guns and action figures and race cars. Even video games are immersing oneself, creating a character for yourself and going through a mission. But what do all of these things have in common? Why are they related to storytelling? Because all of these mundane, childhood activities have to do with one thing: playing pretend. Pretending that you are a professional chef, pretending that you were the only fairy that could save the fairy land, pretending you were fighting evil aliens off with your best friends. The pretending opportunities are endless. And by pretending, you are creating characters and worlds and a story from which there is none. Without realizing it, every child is a storyteller at heart, but it is the novelists who just take this task along with them into adulthood. Storytelling is innate and crucial to our survival.
This kind of turned out to be more of a praise on storytelling but oh well. I hope you enjoyed this and have a fresh, lovely take on the art of storytelling.
Never stop writing,
~The WordShaker
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