Will Storr

Delighted to announce my next SCIENCE OF STORYTELLING LIVE! masterclass, on character and plot. Containing lots of new ideas not featured in the bestselling book. Now EXCLUSIVE to full subscribers of my weekly newsletter You Are A Story. May 28th 6pm LINK BELOW!

Watched the first 2 episodes of the new Dexter. Even for the Dexter universe, the story makes no sense at all. If you think too hard about it you will laugh at the absurdity. But the protagonist is so beloved no one cares. More evidence for @wstorr’s dictum that for a gripping…

Book Review: The Status Game by @wstorr Rating: 9.5/10 The Status Game is a fascinating and deeply insightful exploration of one of the most powerful forces driving human behavior: our desire for status. Full review on my Substack. substack.com/@thewisesurmis…

"Nobody wins the status game. They’re not supposed to. The meaning of life is not to win, it’s to play." ~@wstorr

We'll be back to regular scheduling next week, but in the meantime, enjoy this certified classic from the Infinite Loops Archives with the great @wstorr 👇

Full livestream with @wstorr here: robkhenderson.com/p/luxury-loung…

"But this pulling-away was [...] more like being drugged. Reality lost its rich, deep dimensionality & its sense of possibility & the future, & became reduced to its narrowest dimensions." -@wstorr Wow! Sounds like a description of lost childhood from: willstorr.substack.com/p/decoding-the…

From my conversation with @wstorr Will Storr: In The Status Game, I break prestige into two types: virtue and competence. In the hunter-gatherer tribes where we evolved, people gained prestige either by being virtuous—knowing and following the rules, being selfless and…

From my conversation with @wstorr: Rob Henderson: I read in your book that there are different tiers for frequent flyer programs, and that at the very highest levels, there are special unmarked airport lounges for VIPs that most travelers don’t even know exist. Can you explain…

Just released a powerful episode with @wstorr. Will Storr, one of the most thoughtful writers on human behavior I’ve come across. We talked about how stories shape everything: our identities, our beliefs, even our sense of right and wrong. Most of us don’t realize how much…

From my conversation with @wstorr: Rob Henderson: I think you cited some research suggesting that the Hero’s Journey might not be what audiences are actually responding to. That instead, it might be something like story reversals. Is that right? Will Storr: Yeah, there was a…

From my conversation with @wstorr: I was watching the latest Mission Impossible movie and realized the plot was so convoluted it made no sense. And yet, the theater was packed. Everyone was glued to their seats. Part of the appeal is the spectacle—Tom Cruise, in his 60s, doing…

Easily the most thrilling thing about Substack is writing without an editor. This makes everything much more risky. This week’s (free to read) essay would never have been commissioned by a magazine or newspaper: a pitch for 3000 words on the aesthetic construction of self and my…

Perfect Sunday reading 📚 “Art reflects us, and it also becomes us.” - @wstorr Perhaps life is a dance into ephemeral impermanence... open.substack.com/pub/willstorr/…

Here is @wstorr at @Humanists_UK convention 2025. Great talk about the human quest for status and its consequences.

Luxury Lounges and Status Games. My livestream conversation with the great @wstorr: robkhenderson.com/p/luxury-loung…

“The higher we rise, the more likely we are to live, love and procreate. It’s the essence of human thriving. It’s the status game,” ⁦@wstorr⁩ observes. From the Darwinian Business archives: darwinianbusiness.com/2022/01/08/the…