Page 264 - Wordsmith A Guide to College Writing

Focus on Showing and Telling: The

Power of the Narrative

A narrative is a story, and stories are powerful. They stick with
us. Do you know the story behind the McDonald’s franchise?

Behind Coca-Cola? Behind your favorite sports team? Behind

your favorite clothing brand? Chances are that such a story will

be easy to find.

Companies want to share their stories with us, and often, they
want us to share our stories with them. The websites of

hospitals often feature patients’ stories. The advertisements of

some companies feature true customer stories. Can you think

of any or find any on the Internet? Do you consider such stories