Stories are best when they break with expectation, even if it is to a modest degree. If the direction of the story is obvious -the desire is simply met, and a realization predicted - why bother sharing the story. Even in our short narrative about a photo, you always have the possibility of surprise.

One of the oldest tricks of the storytelling trade is the reversal of expectation. We are going along thinking character A is the problem, when it is really the nice one, character B, that appears to have created the havoc. Just when we think character B will be brought to justice, character A and the never suspected character C are found to have conluded to frame character A.

Falsies by Daniel Weinshenker

In this piece, we think we are hearing a story about a nice grandmother, and we are really hearing a story of family abuse. We then think we are hearing a story of stoic resolve, and then we are left with a story of resistance. Turning our expectations makes us look more deeply at the meaning of the story, and what it says about our prejudices and assumptions in relationship to our larger culture. This is the essence of the satirical story.