Learn what it takes to tell a good story.
@ScottAdamsSays came up with them, and man they're good (and Tweet worthy).
I don't care how boring you think your life is, you can craft a story out of anything
The key to good storytelling is preparation.
1. Setup
- When you tell a story, you become the center of attention. People won't give you a lot of it so you need to keep it brief.
- A good setup has one or two sentences at most.
- "So I went to this barbershop one time..."
- That's perfect. No need to say where is it located.
2. Pattern
- Pattern is something that repeats itself over and over.
- Because you're telling a story, it's implied that the pattern will be broken.
3. Foreshadowing
- "So I'm walking down this creek and I can't see anything. I usually carry a flashlight with me but I left it at home."
- Oh my, what's gonna happen?
- Again, no reason to explain why.
4. Characters
- Characters make up a good story if they're not characters alone.
- You need to add some brief personality trait, give them an idea of how they will contribute.
- Now you know Jack.
5. Relatability
- Remember people care mostly about themselves, so choose a topic they will care about.
- Everything can be put into a story, yes.
- But you'll have a better response if you talk about Florida weather with your fellow Floridians than about math.
- Keep it relatable.
6. The Twist
- A story without a twist is just a narrative of your day.
- Give it a twist to break the pattern you already set up.
- Make it fun, too.
- People won't have fun if you're not.
Craig Ball - The Spinwit Blog
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Black Hawk, Colorado is an old gambling town just west of Golden on North Clear Creek at 8,000 feet of elevation. Legalized Casino Gambling was reinstated on October 1st, 1991.
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Craig Ball is an MBA student at the University of Illinois, a football coach, teacher, and former casino owner in the Gaming District. This site is used for sharing information about what I'm reading /writing on topics like education, coaching, and casino gambling.
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Email: craig@spinwit.com