What Are Nifty Stories?
09/09/08
I grew up with the word "nifty" as a standard descriptor in my vocabulary. It alluded to the uniqueness and stylishness of the subject being described. As I grew older I heard the word being used in a wider range of topics: a nifty song, a nifty concert, a nifty evening out. Later still, it cropped up in conversations about more "cultural" experiences: nifty books, nifty poems, and nifty stories. Storyteller
Whenever I heard the word I assumed it meant something good, something attractive. However, it was only when I found myself using the word in my own description of my stories that I needed to define it. Actually, it was a listener who called my material "nifty stories," and that comment sent me to the books. The Merriam/Webster Dictionary definition states: "very good, very attractive," etymology unknown, originally used in 1865. The standard reference Compact Oxford Dictionary states: "particularly good, effective, or stylish." Go here.
What was my listener describing when he called my stories "nifty?" The stories I tell always have a message, a lesson, a bit of perspective, and they are, indeed, particularly good and rather effective at making their point. You could say that my idea of stories that are nifty are ones that entertain as well as enlighten. I look for stories with certain underlying values that help the listener to set their internal compass when sailing through life.
Nifty stories edify. Nifty stories are memorable. Nifty stories travel beyond the culture from which they originate. Nifty stories are always in vogue. These stories are naturally very attractive. Any stories of worth are nifty stories. You can find great nifty stories on www.Jaystetzer.com
