The Secret Behind Why Stories Make Us Cry, Laugh, and Hope

Sara Jane Jacobs
Sep 10
2 min read

Soft impressionistic painting of a young woman sitting in a chair by a window, reading a book in a cozy room with bookshelves and warm light.

Sometimes it only takes a handful of words to undo us.

A few lines on a page can leave us wiping away tears, grinning at a bit of dialogue, or holding our breath for someone we’ve only just met in chapter one. One sentence can spark a memory we thought we’d forgotten. Another can remind us of a moment we’ve lived ourselves, or one we’ve always longed for. That's the power of story.

We cry. We laugh. We hope. And a whole lot of other emotions!

Cry... because stories validate our pain. They whisper, you’re not alone.
Laugh... because stories remind us of joy and connection.
Hope... because stories show us redemption and possibility, even in the hardest places.

And through all of it, we feel—because that’s the power of story.

My editor once commented during edits on my first book:

“Great job wringing the emotion out of me. I teared up here. I was rooting for her all the way….”

She actually lets me know quite often when something moves her during edits, and I’m always a little surprised by it. I don’t really think of myself as someone who can produce that kind of emotion on my own. Anytime it happens, I just marvel at how God works through us in ways we can’t always see.

But stories don’t always make us comfortable—and that’s part of their power, too. One of my beta readers once told me she couldn’t finish my first book because a character unsettled her. Her reaction was proof that stories can dig deep, pressing on places inside us we might not expect.

The Secret of Why Stories Make Us Cry

Painterly illustration of a young woman in a white dress sitting with an open book, soft golden light rising from the pages in abstract threads, symbolizing the emotions and connections found in stories.

Here’s the lovely secret: there’s actually a bit of science behind why stories make us cry—and why they move us in so many other ways too. In our brains, there are cells called mirror neurons. They’re designed to let us “feel with” others. When we see someone cry, those neurons respond as if we were crying, too—which is why we often feel a lump in our throat or tears of our own. When we hear laughter, we can’t help but smile.

Stories harness this beautiful wiring, giving us a safe space to experience emotions and, more importantly, to find meaning in them.

That’s the gift of story: it doesn’t just entertain us. It moves us.