Strangers in a story by Poles (6)
I believe the answer is:
aliens
'strangers' is the definition.
('alien' can be a synonym of 'stranger')
'a story by poles' is the wordplay.
'story' becomes 'lie' (story can mean a fabrication).
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'poles' becomes 'ns' (North and South poles).
'a'+'lie'+'ns'='ALIENS'
'in' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for aliens that I've seen before include "Immigrants" , "Science-fiction creatures" , "Foreigners or creatures from outer space" , "Beings from another planet" , "Outsiders" .)