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It should have a goal, an impact ... a message to deliver ...

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An interesting story relates to the way it is written, the subject/topic, and the interest of the reader/audience.

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A good story always grabs attention. The key is to find a character that allows narrating a sense of effort, courage, hope. Care must be taken that the institutional narrative complements history and does not weaken it. A story moves, humanizes and should give hope.

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-The way it is written. I like to know the details but I also like simple language.
-I want to be able to visualize people and places.
-I don't have to relate to it but I want to feel that this could be me one day.
- I want to feel inspired and not helpless.
-I want to know that difficulty is possible but there is always hope..

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The use of a relatable human story to illustrate a wider issue. Not necessarily relatable in the sense of the reader's lived experience, but relatable in the sense of the story sparking empathy for, and even affinity with, the main character.

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What makes an interesting story: ability relate/or empathize, good narrative/plot, and memorable protagonist

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surprising twist or point of view
speed (or no speed) of the story that absorbs my interest
it combines emotions like smell, feelings, tastes, and connects beginning and end.
easy to remember topic, not too complicated.

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Tension, conflict, resolution, underdog character, beautiful writing

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It has a unique perspective, it takes you somewhere you were not expecting, it has a powerful core message.

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Where there is a real challenge that speaks to the human experience and the journey to resolution.

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When it speaks to your heart, when you can relate to it, when you learn something, when it catches your attention and most importantly, when you are not bored, that's what makes it interesting.

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What makes a story interesting is one that has a compelling personal narrative, such as someone overcoming something, a surprise or a story that is inspiring. It contains relevance to today’s pressing issues and elicits emotions.

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Yes, an interesting story should be about people: their dreams and desires; loves and hates; problems and passions.

It needs conflict and resolution; tension and release; mystery and revelation.

There should be losses and gains, setbacks and comebacks, peaks and troughs.

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The human interest stories that emotionally engage audience.

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Simple, emotional, showing first hand stories, for example, on how people overcome the struggles in their daily lives. Ideally accompanied with strong images, video, to capture those 8 secs of attention.

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To me, an interesting story has to have an emotional aspect and new information to share.

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It bolsters imagination and it is engaging as one would like to follow it ...

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A story that creates an empathy makes it an interesting story for me.

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A story is interesting if it causes an emotional reaction.

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A story becomes interesting for me when it captures me with all the senses and transmits smells, noises and tastes, even through a written story. This makes the story a journey.

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The protagonist of the story is the most important part for me, for instance, how the protagonist deals with the situation and overcome it. If the action is relatable for me, it makes an interesting.

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For me personally the interesting story is either the one i can relate to or an absolutely fantastical one, which blows your imagination away (like Harry Potter :))

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For me, a success story is the one that portrays a reality in such a way that it stirs and calls you to action in whatever capacity possible

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Human drama is one of the elements that makes me attracted to a story. For instance, I almost always like every movie in the series of Star Wars. The fate of relationship between the father Darth Vader and his son Anakin Skywalker moves me very emotionally every time I watch it again and again, in addition to the dramatic plot of each movie.

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The following factors makes the story interesting;
1. Humanity
2. Emotionally engaging story
3. Showing hero and community champion

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What makes an interested story is the ability to capture the attention and emotions of the reader. This is especially important in catering to the drastic reduction in people's attentions spans in the present day.

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Florencia S. Murphy - UNIC BA (Argentina)

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Florencia S. Murphy - UNIC BA (Argentina)

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For me, what makes a story interesting is its ability to speak to someone's heart. There are a few ways to do that, some more obvious than other, but I believe that the majority of the success when writing a compelling story rests in a combination of a human-relatable theme and the formal aspects (i.e., the decisions made by the author about the style, vocabulary, structure and overall "uniqueness" in which the theme is presented).

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An interesting story shares perspectives, thoughts and feelings that evokes some type of emotion in the reader, whether it is sadness, joy, anger or humor it needs to illicit some type of emotional reaction from the reader

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An interesting story works on one idea and illustrate the idea from various perspective.

It also needs to have a good structure and flow, allowing the readers to follow the ideas smoothly and is attention-catching. Readers would not be bored by the words within the story.

The quotes need to be authentic and carries emotions. The story is vivid, mixing stories, background, with descriptive language about the surroundings, etc.

It needs to end well. The end needs to be something memorable by the readers. The readers could learn something from the story at a personal level.

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An interesting story should definitely be about a timely issue and should be relevant to our audiences, but should also trigger their imagination and transport them into the world of "the hero of our story" or the main character in order to connect with the story and keep reading till the end.

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I believe that a captivating story should offer a perspective, challenge or solution that the reader is unfamiliar with. Putting a human 'face' to an otherwise larger problem means that I am more likely to empathise with the character, topic and storyline.

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An interesting story won't be forgotten. It connect the individuals with a cause, a challenge, an action that you believe should be taken and sometimes a reality that calls for an action.
It connects you with the story characters and engage you emotionally and mentally with their journey, despite the hardship that can be described.

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I love stories that combine challenges with adventure, resilience, humour, action and solutions. They must be communicated in a simple way, less "dictionary-reaching" words with photos and powerful reflections.

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I believe that it's the proximity that makes a story interesting; its "closeness" to the audience, their territory, their interest, their drams etc... When a story connects with the audience it drives attention and interest.

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Interesting story introduces an interesting character(s)

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An interesting story has a captivating hook/ beginning, is relatable to readers and should promote inspirations and hope after reading.

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I read a lot - and pretty much of everything. Most stories are similar in plot...setting, conflict, resolution...but what makes a story interesting to me is the way it is written, the words used, the flow of the sentences, the realness and relatability of the characters, situations, emotions. Some writers have the ability to make you feel like you're in the story, like Marquez, and the best stories are the ones that make you experience that alternate reality, so that when they end, it takes a moment for you to snap out of that world and come back to this one!

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The captivated stories are those inspiring examples of human centered. When the story line is writting well with innovative approach with data and figures to illustrate.
Numbers are the best way to demonstrate need and impact. Statistics can make a powerful, credible point about why the organisation's work is important.

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Lenka Ctvrteckova, UNICEF Czech Republic

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Lenka Ctvrteckova, UNICEF Czech Republic

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An interesting story is the one that is unusual (maybe sometimes even shocking), gripping and possibly relatable. The characters should be realistically depicted, not some perfect superheroes. We tend to remember things that somehow affected us emotionally – hence, the story should work with that, however, it must not be overdone...

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The human angle of the story makes it more interesting. I like to read real-life stories, that can take me back to a certain era (realistically) and make me walk that real person´s shoes.
For example, I keep reading about the refugee crisis, the numbers, the locations... I learn about how they cross the world by land, by air or by sea.

It wasn´t until a couple years ago when I read "We are displaced" by Malala where I got to know the girls behind the statistics, their story, their journey and their troubles before reaching safety.

The feeling is what remains until today.

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Getting away from statistics, systems and process and focussing on the human interest. As many other have mentioned, a memorable story tends to be relatable and conceivable.

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A great story is one which keep the reader engaged. Don't make the reader work too hard. If the reader has to analyse or interpret they have to stop reading and start thinking. And then you've lost them. Good stories are nothing without good writing

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I feel like storytelling should be relatable and "hit home" to grasp one's attention

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To me a story is interesting when it touches my heart and when it provokes feelings and trigger reactions in me. I remember books that I read over 10 years ago because I can still reconnect with the feeling that I had when reading them.

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An interesting story is one that is grounded on a teaching or something to be learned from the experiences of the characters. The story then takes shape by taking the audience through how the characters come to uncover this core element of the story across all different genres.

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In my opinion there are several factors that can make a story interesting:
- It talks about facts that are not known but most of the readers, or talk about unknown aspects of stories that people know.
- It tells the story of a person or a group of persons and it is is inspiring for those that read it or watch it/listen to it.
- It teaches you something new

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Stories with mysteries catch me more than others, and so do specific story-tellers who use engaging technics, and generate anticipation and other emotions.

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I like colors, details that make characters come to life; emotions.

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I personally like stories that create some anticipation or intrigue at the start of a story, so as a reader I cant wait to get to the end to find out what happened. This combined with good characterization, creating empathy and good use of imagery makes for a good story.

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I like stories with compelling characters -- I love knowing people's stories; where they came from; what motivates them

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An interesting story is simple, clear and impactful.
There has to be conflict and tension, but also solutions and hope.
Also, sometimes its not that much about the content of the story itself, but the way it is communicated.

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The following elements make a story interesting

1. A human interest angle
2.Approved and reliable data to support content.
3.An experts voice
4. Solution-based
5. Vivid descriptions and narration of the situation
6. Powerful quotes
7. Amazing photos

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Something that makes a story interesting is the wow factor of novelty combined with a unique way of writing with solid facts that substantiate it. The whole resolution of a conflict, drama and happy ending is quite predictable. We've read them time and time again. What will make a story memorable in my view is the way these elements are combined and how they are presented.

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I would say a story that is appealing and makes want to keep reading until the end. Also adding pictures would be a great addition to bring my attention!

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I love reading stories about people's lives, when something historical and big is told via a story of one person or a family. And i love when it is written in simple words, when my imagination starts painting pictures right away without stumbling over compcated words

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A great story should make you feel inspired, amused or it should teach you something new, it can also explain you a very complicated situation in a creative and clear way. A great story is the one that puts you in the center of the story by making you relate to the character. For that it should be human centered.

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An interesting story manages to combine Ethos, Pathos and Logos, similar to how a powerful speech aims to combine credibility, emotion, imagination, sympathy, logic and reason.

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I am interested in a story that is first relatable, and well told and with the use of good photos, videos and data.

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I am interested by a story when I can relate to the story, while learning something new. What makes stories more interesting are visuals (pictures, videos etc.)

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An interesting story is one that you can empathize with, that touches you and makes you think about it.

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An interesting story has an eye-catching opening, is relevant to readers' lives and has an unexpected but reasonable pilot. It also ends with thought provoking inspirations that linger in the readers' minds...

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An important aspect in a story to me is to reflect the environment and surrounding of your main character to reflect unique features that may not be familiar to others, most of our humanitarian or development stories comes from unusual circumstances which required our agencies intervention in the first place, this features can include interesting materials about their problems, solutions offered, their families, culture, past or anything that might be new to readers and might grab their attention, it can be either pleasing or choking.

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Definitely seeing myself in the shoes of the characters of the story. In the story above, I immediately imagined a life where you can't go outside and live in constant fear. The story becomes powerful when you feel like you're the main character.

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Something new, not cliché. Something meaningful, not a waste of time.

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I think the most important is the way you write the story and of course this should be linked to a good image or video if possible. You could have a good history, good characters but if you don´t use the right language you can not find the interest of your public.

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I think that more than the story itself, the most important thing is to know how to tell it. You don't need big scenarios, nor epic stories, you just need to find the perfect formula through the approach, the tone, the thread, etc. You can write a good book just telling the life of a cockroach if you do it right. I also believe that the formulas used for centuries in literature still work and that a good writer can still use them to write his novels. About other texts, such as life stories or reports, there always has to be something shocking for the reader, something that makes him think or surprises him, and this can be an interesting character or a remarkable fact or fact that he did not know.

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An interesting story is captivating because there is something in the character that intrigues us or that marvel us.
A good story is also a rythm between the different marking events and the climax.

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An relevant story generate connection and empathize with the public. Even if the topic is not directly related with their daily life, a good storytelling captivate and intrigues us in a provocative way.

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The style used in the story grabs my attention. I read the story in full if it is true, provides information and insights about a topic that I am interested in. Additionally, the story’s simplicity makes it more interesting than lengthy pieces with jargon and complexities.

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A great story is humanized, fact-checked, informative and carries compeling storytelling.

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In our context, the story should inspire hope and call to action. I think its important to feature positive and inspiring stories, as most of people are seeing the UN as a "conveyor of bad news".

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For me, an interesting story is a story revolving around the people; a story that is capable to grab my attention from the very beginning, that makes me long for the end, and brings hope and creates optimism rather than feelings of sorrow and distress. An interesting story is a story of actions and not processes, that is short and crisp, that motivates me or moves me through its words but also through its compelling photos. In short, for me, an interesting story is a story of hope!

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A compelling story is short, crisp and relatable. Language should be easy, simple and messaging clear even for a layman to understand. Starting should be powerful to grasp the readers/viewer attention. Powerful visuals are a must.

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For me the true stories are the most interesting; those that are emotional, well detailed, with very well defined characters.

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Stories are interesting to me when they resonate with some facet of the human condition that I can relate to or connect with. Looking at Yaser's story, I have never had to make long difficult treks under the cover of darkness, nor have I had to uproot from my home to escape violence. But, as a child, I was afraid of the dark, and I am a parent with two children of my own, so the thought of children working their way through the darkness to get to safety raised my empathy and my anxiety. I am a parent who would sacrifice for my children, so I could only imagine the tough decision Yaser had to make when he chose to put his young children on a boat to make a dangerous sea crossing. These elements resonate with me because they are slices of the human condition that I can connect to.

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What makes a story interesting?

A story should make a reader emotional, you either feel happy or sad or feel sympathy or make you want to donate or help or act.

Describe what you feel makes an interesting story.
You always need to remember what the story says after you read that story. You should also be  able to tell others.
A relatable character?
Every story has have a face in it and a voice. Our role is not to be the voice of the voiceless, our job is to give the people a mic to amplify  their voice
Or a far-away place where the story unravels? A setting is important as long as we can make it vivid  Or the use of interesting data and facts?

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A great story is one that is memorable and stirs the emotions of people. A great story should also make the reader curious to know more.

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I appreciate a story that grips my attention, paints a picture with words, a story that is thought provoking so I would want to discuss it with my peers. Must be relatable, interesting, and opens up all kinda of emotions. A story that ends with progress or an update on individual development, so we are encouraged to take an action.

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Make the reader relate, feel the emotion and learn. And make them think - this would encourage action.

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I believe that interesting stories are the ones that we can take something from or walk from having become a slightly better/more educated/more aware/ more empathic human being. These are the stories that enlighten us, make us sympathise with the main characters, raise our awareness on particular issues, or inspire us. Ideally, the stories that are great, make you see the world tad differently, or even provoke a change in your behaviour and thinking. All in all, good stories are emotional, compelling, informative, inspiring, and educational.

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Sandra Black, Communications Consultant, Maputo, Mozambique

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Sandra Black, Communications Consultant, Maputo, Mozambique

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I appreciate mentions from colleagues that they want to learn something in stories. I appreciate true stories/ documentaries that are educational. A strong story includes emotions details that a reader can relate to. In the story of Yaser- I can relate to needing glasses to be able to see well (read). Details like this can pull in our audience. I appreciate that in Yaser's story the location was not shared at the onset - making it relate more widely to the human experience.

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Simple stories are often the best kind of stories. Especially in the humanitarian settings it is also important to emphasize on the emotions of the reader so that they can feel the sufferings of the refugees and displaced people.

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A good story to me, is one that you can find a part of yourself in. Even if the story has nothing to do with anything you've ever experienced, if it can capture an emotion you've felt, or an experience you can relate yourself to, you will identify with the story.

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A good story awakens your attention and gives you a chance to see the events, emotions, people with someone else's, the story tellers perspective.

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An interesting story is the one with positive impact, concise, and to the point.
Details must add something to the main idea.
For example, in the story above, I skipped the children names and age, for me it's a detail that doesn't add to the story, I just need to know that he has 5 children.
Quotes are always an asset to the story.
A voice over would be great if possible: hearing a story, draws my attention more than reading it only!

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Ekaterina Polishshuk, UNV Europe and CIS 

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Ekaterina Polishshuk, UNV Europe and CIS 

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I like linear, well-defined stories with the explanatory background. I need to know why and how the issue/character appeared, in which circumstances. And personally, I like more dry stats and analytics to read VS human interest stories but the good one can really make me cry and, most importantly, act.

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I need to learn something new after reading the story. If the story doesn't say much, I don't see the point of reading it even if it's touching.

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Generally I tend to read stories that intrigue me and give me a sense of learning something new . Indeed below criteria must be considered according to me :
* The title and the short description
*Accurate and verified facts
*A powerful and captivating literature

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For me, an interesting story is the one that is related to historical events and based on true stories. I like to know and dive into people's lives and experiences. Automatically my brain tends to the predisposition to show interest in the story. Of course, good literature is fundamental as well as having something substantial to tell that catches me and does not let me escape from the story. This kind of stories have an enormous impact on me, and I cannot stop thinking about it even days or weeks after reading it.

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Agnes Kante, UNAIDS Liaison Office, Addis Ababa

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Agnes Kante, UNAIDS Liaison Office, Addis Ababa

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What makes a story interesting is its ability to have the readers relate to the characters, put themselves in their shoes, feel what they feel (sadness, pain, pride, joy...) when they face certain situations which are either universally relatable and/or context-specific. Most importantly, stories that present a dilemma which we all want to overcome - and that is either solved or not by the characters. I found the feelings of accomplishment and outrage two powerful tools to trigger reflection and action.

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Saana Sarpo, UNDP Regional Hub for Arab States, Amman

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Saana Sarpo, UNDP Regional Hub for Arab States, Amman

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An interesting story is one that combines something relatable to something new - thus it gives the reader the feeling that they can understand what someone is going through, while also getting them to learn something new on the way.

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A story is interesting if it gives me new prospective or teach me a new lesson.

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A very simple formula works for me:
little-known facts about something very popular.

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What appeals in a story is discover a new reality but also being able to empathize with the facts. Usually, I don't particularly appreciate when they don't give me enough facts to make a comprehensive decision about what is happening.
Because I like to read some themes that I am interested in, so I have the knowledge, when NGOs give a plain, sad, paternalist story, I don't like it.
Don't tell me the sad without telling me why it is sad.

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For me, what makes a story interesting is fascinating characters, a good content and a positive approach.

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Hook - A strong hook is the best way to sell your story and generate interest around it.

Identification - that has feelings that are universal.

Characters - Strong stories have characters that act and sound like real people.

Culminate successfully - The ending, of course, must be strong. That it makes sense, things fit together, and threads are resolved.

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As communication officers we have been told for years to tell stories. However, most of the stories are very much alike, featuring people in distress, or just out of a scary and dangerous situation or "success stories" of refugees, or victims of violence. I can already feel a reader fatigue. First Human stories have to be "original", something that we have not read before, it has to be the point of entry of a bigger story. What is missing in the story of Yaser is how many syrian refugees have arrived in germany, Europe, total. What the average time to get registered in Germany. something that lead the a bigger picture. The story of Yaser is moving but has been told hundred times.

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To me what makes a story interesting is the combination of few clear data and facts and a human centered approach with a relatable character. The story needs to spark interest in the reader by creating some emotions, which can be both positive or negative. Good pictures or visual can definitely help.

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An interesting story is one that a reader can related to, a human interest story, written chronologically in a clear and concise manner.

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Without characters, there is no way for a reader to access the story. We need to empathise with the characters—understand them—even if we do not sympathise or agree with their choices.