Craft Compelling Stories To Wow Your Audience

Exciting news everyone

I’ve started designing my video course. Most of you wanted tips to make your writing more interesting. So that’s the focus.

If you need help with any other topics just reply to this email and I’ll send you some helpful resources.

I’m obsessed with storytelling at the moment so that’s this week’s topic.

Let’s go.

Stories are a superpower for writers.

A tool that can achieve almost everything for you. Grab attention? tick. Be memorable? yes. Persuasive? absolutely. Interesting? Relatable? All of the above.

But stories are surprisingly difficult to write.

In the pub with your mates? It’s easy. No one leaves the room when you share about your disastrous work meeting. But that’s exactly what happened when I used stories in my writing. My read rate fell through the floor.

So here are the 3 mistakes I’m busy fixing:

1. Make it about you

The best stories are yours.

You can share historical stories or made-up ones. But the potent ones are about you. Being personal makes readers connect with you. It’s a key tool if you want a loyal fan base.

But this makes it dangerous.

Because your story is about you. You don’t get bored by it. You get caught up in all the details. Eagerly sharing the bits you love.

And here’s the big mistake. The story is not for you. It’s for your reader.

And this changes everything.

Use it to decide:

• which details to ignore

• what to emphasize

• which story to tell

Detach from your story and make it for your reader.

2. Long set up

All parts of a story are not equal.

A story has 3 parts:

the setup

The situation and main character are introduced. This helps the reader understand the context.

problem

The main conflict is revealed. All stories centre around a tension. Something goes wrong. Or the main character wants something.

solution

The hero saves the day. The conflict is resolved. Everyone’s relieved there’s a solution.

For example:

I was leaving the house this morning (the setup). And I couldn’t find my car keys (problem). Then I noticed them lying on the path outside (solution).

Many writers make the setup too long. It’s the most boring part of the story. So make it short and sweet.

I got up this morning and had my usual shower. I listened to the news as I ate my breakfast. It was 745am as the sun rose. I’d slept well so was feeling good. My wife had been working nights so she was planning a lazy morning.

You probably didn’t even read this full paragraph. That’s because the setup is dull. Get to the problem quickly. Include enough details so the problem makes sense. But no more.

But imagine you started your story…

I couldn’t find my car keys. I looked everywhere…

The reader’s brain struggles to place the character in a context. They are distracted wondering, where are you? house? the shops? on holiday? outside work?

Give enough detail so you can reveal the problem.

But then some writers get this bit wrong.

3. Fail to dial up the tension

The problem is the power generator of the story.

It keeps attention. Readers feel a deep need to know what’s happened. But only if they care. Dial up the tension to seize your reader’s interest.

There are two ways to do this:

• make them care about the issue

• make them care about the character

Do you care I’ve lost my car keys? Probably not. But if you realise:

• I need them to get to a job interview

• This interview is for my dream job

• I need this job so I can feed my two malnourished children (Toby & Jessie aged 3 & 5)

Now you are bothered about the keys.

Show your reader why this matters.

(if you know any good storytelling resources I’d love to hear about them)

See you next week,

Derek

What I’ve been reading…Deep Work by Cal Newport

because I think I can achieve more if I deepen my focus.

Two ways I can help you further:

1. The Writing Clinic - personal coaching and feedback on your writing. Click here for more details.

2. My best 10 hooks dissected - a 5-day email course breaking down my best 10 X hooks and why they worked. 23 × 5-star reviews on Gumroad.