01.
Better Stories
are transformational.
All stories need a structure (eg. Poetics, Hero’s Journey, Sparkline, Kishotenketsu, Freitag or Minto's Pyramid, Beats etc). At their core, all stories are about a journey where someone (or something) is transformed for better (or worse).
01.1
4 Words & 5 Lines.
In 2022 I spent a week in Boston studying JFK's speeches at the Presidential Library. After reading his notes and seeing his last minute edits of famous speeches, I sat in his chair to learn more about his process "4 Words & 5 Lines" - the approach favoured by his speechwriter Ted Sorensen. [8 mins]
01.2
Duarte's Sparkline.
No one has inspired me more to chase the career I have more than Nancy Duarte. (I always wanted to be Sam Seaborn from The West Wing but since he's a fictional character he probably doesn't count). Watch Nancy's TED talk about Story Structure and you'll see why I love her. [18 mins]
01.3
The Writer's Journey.
Christopher Vogler's book on the transformational structure of stories is a masterclass in itself. As a story analyst for Disney, Vogler wrote a seven-page memo that changed Hollywood. This book will help you improve the way you communicate at work. I recorded a short video about it here. [492 pages]
01.4
Save the Cat.
If you go to film school to study storytelling Save the Cat is probably one of the first books you'll read. It teaches you to break stories down into "beats". This structure works well for longer business presentations. Got a 90-minute workshop to write? Sounds like the length of a movie... [195 pages]
01.5
Hero's Journey's.
The Hero's Journey, popularised by Joseph Campbell and made famous by George Lucas (it's the OUTLINE for all Star Wars films) is often taken out of content in business. But it's the best story structure we have, so it's important to understand the rules. So that you can break them. [10 mins]
01.6
Rhetoric.
The art of influence and persuasion; an essential skill for any communicator. Rhetoric has a bad rep, mostly because of the way it is (mis)used in politics but it's a powerful tool. Especially the Five Canon's of Rhetoric which provide the outline of the persuasive process. TRIVIUM is a simple guidebook which breaks it all down in a fun way. [410 pages]
01.7
Intention & Obstacle.
Aaron Sorkin (Jobs, The West Wing, Social Network, Moneyball, A Few Good Men) is one of the best screenwriters of our generation. His OUTLINES always start with intention and obstacle. Here's a short audio clip of him explaining how you can use this in your stories. [9 mins]
* Sidenote: Not all narrative structures need a "conflict" though. I'm looking at you Kishotenketsu!
01.8
Pillars of Story Structure.
Peter von Stackelberg (Professor of Journalism & Transmedia Storytelling) developed Pillars of Story Structure as a way for students in his storytelling classes to quickly compare a number of different story models. This helpful graphic incorproates Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey, Dan Harman's Story Circle and Chris Vogler's Inner & Outer Journey. [Click image for PDF]
01.9
9 Questions.
Based on the "9 Principles of Better Stories" these are 9 of the most common questions that I ask when I'm trying to help business leaders to strengthen their stories. This cheat sheet (with book recommendations) is a good reminder to keep by your desk. [PDF Download]
01.10
45 Quotes.
I curated this short book of my favourite storytelling quotes for anyone to steal when they are waxing lyrical about the art and science of storytelling. Sometimes great presentations are just missing a great quote to open or close the talk. So this could be just what you're looking for. [PDF Download]
01.11
Quantum Storytelling.
When you look behind the scenes at really great presenters (especially when they're telling a highly technical story to a non-technical audience) you can learn a lot from them. I love to share examples like I did on this Linkedin post about IBM Research Director, Dario Gil. Click the graphic for a 10-minute tutorial that goes a little deeper behind the scenes of one of Dario's presentations. [10 mins]
01.12
The Princess Bride.
The Princess Bride is the perfect template for how you pitch a story. When William Goldman was first attempting to turn his book into a screenplay 50 years ago, it took over 10 years of pitching the movie before it was eventually picked up.
His successful 10-minute pitch contained 1,200 words, 19 "beats"and 15 plot points. As a result, he created "The 10 Commandments of Pitching" which contain great advice for any business presenter. [10 Mins]
