In the last 5-Minute Author Notes episode I talked about the power of using stories no matter what kind of book you are writing, but today I want to sound a cautionary note.

Unless you are writing a memoir, which is essentially all about stories, you can’t tell stories for the sake of stories. To be effective, there needs to be a point to them, a point that ties in with whatever you are saying at that particular place in the book.

Have you ever listened to the Best Man at a wedding give a speech that began with a joke? Usually just a random joke they thought was funny — but it had nothing to do with the wedding or the people involved. How did you feel about that? Personally, those jokes make me cringe, and I always wonder why they bothered. Couldn’t they have started with a fun, friendly story about the couple?

Even worse is the business presenter who does the same thing. Usually this happens when the presenter can’t figure out another way to begin, so they tell a joke. The audience members are left trying to make a connection with the subject of the speech — a connection that doesn’t exist. Not a way to make a good impression.

Similarly, when you tell stories in your book, give a great deal of thought to why you are telling them. Here’s a good template to make the most of stories:

Story — point — application, OR

Point — story — application

The application part is how the reader can apply the principle illustrated by the story to his or her situation.

Using this format will not only help your reader understand the material, but as you work on using stories in your book, it will make sure you are using them to move your message forward and not just to fill up space.