Opening: Imagine looking out into your audiences and feeling every eye fixed upon you with expressions of wonder and curiosity that seem to say to you: "Wow, I can't wait to hear what you have to say next?"

Promise: To engage your audiences' attention and interest, and to keep them intrigued, you must make statements that create questions in their minds which, in turn, will stir up on-going wonder and curiosity.

Roadmap: There are 9C's in Craig Valentine's "Storytelling Home-Study Course for Speakers" starting with the embedding of curiosity in audiences' minds throughout the other 8 stages of a story - from the setting up of the Circumstance to the ending of the Carry-out message. This month, we'll examine the important notion of curiosity and wonder as it applies to the stories we tell.

What is the most important part of a presentation? Whenever I ask this question, I hear answers like: introduction, callbacks, conclusion, stories, the characters, the dialogue, and so on. While all the answers are great, the most important part is: The thinking that goes on in the minds of the audience. We must be aware of what the audience is thinking at all times while we're speaking.

What do great storytellers do? They intentionally create opportunities for curiosity to be created and interwoven in audiences' minds throughout an entire telling of a story. Why?  To keep audiences engaged and intrigued throughout the story.

Tips on how to create curiosity in audience's minds

• create questions/statements to instil curiosity in the audiences' minds
• be aware that questions change as the story develops
• as you plan the writing of your story, jot down any possible questions that come to mind
• rehearse the story with family/friends... ask, without prompting, which questions (if any) came to their mind as you were telling the story
• record and replay your story; and discover at which parts did you create curiosity, if any?

A few simple examples of statements and questions that create curiosity

Remember: Never leave questions in the audience's minds; ensure they're all answered.

Result of leaving unanswered questions in their minds? They will remain stuck at that point and not move on with you and your story or presentation.

Want to discover the other 8 C’s and how to use them? Invest in Craig’s "Storytelling Home-Study Course for Speakers"  CLICK HERE  for more information