Compelling. That's what it all comes down to, the art of storytelling. So, today we'll dive into the big 'Why' of storytelling, then quickly move to the fundamentals of narratives, following it up with inspiring practices, and finish it all with an artistic sheen. Without further delay, here we go...
Good storytelling is - and will always be - in demand
The very first thing you need to know about storytelling - and that even the best storytellers sometimes skip over - is that storytelling itself is the most fundamental tool of mankind. Telling a story is more important than the inventions of the axe, the aqueduct, the steam engine and the harnessing of fire combined, for the very simple reason that narratives allowed the knowledge from those huge leaps in human existence to be shared. Without the story, we would not know of those advances.
As such, storytelling has become the basis of all communication. Starting with cave paintings and tales around the campfire, then chiseling out tales and histories in slabs of rock, followed by the invention of papyrus and ink, up to graffiti, video-games, TV-series and escape rooms... we have used the art of storytelling to convey useful and vital information in a compelling manner. This word 'compelling' is what sets storytelling apart from just the simple sharing of data.
I won't remember nor understand your spreadsheet. But I will remember your presentation on the same subject that was filled with fantastic photography and a few great quotes from the interviews you took about the content, that crucially tells the same story as that spreadsheet. Or to paraphase Confucius: "Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Inspire me and I will get involved."
That right there is the first thing to understand: your story should be showing useful information while being inspiring to engage with in an emotionally compelling way.
Emotions as tools for surviving, living and thriving
It turns out the human brain has a much easier time remembering useful information when it is packed in a shell of relatable emotions. We are social animals, and emotions function as communication devices, since we can communicate with simple gestures and expressions and grunts what we feel. That information - from surprise to delight to disgust to anger to fear - can be a lifesaver in a pivotal moment.
As a result, the brain literally stores emotions as information by firing all kinds of synapses and linking tiny bits of brain-fabric with each other in different parts of our minds. We can read, see, hear, observe and understand each other's emotions, as they physically 'signal' information on an assessment of a situation or context to us. It's these emotions that give the 'judgement' about a situation or context that - in some cases even - could mean our demise or our survival.
Emotions as such, are survival mechanisms. Or at least, started out that way. They are used as info-conveyors that aid surviving an thriving of our species. And the art of storytelling is to make that emotional package as engaging and compelling as possible, using every technique available in the book.
Whether it be a series of cave paintings signifying movement when fire 'dances' over them, effectively creating the first animations in story progression in history (you've got to check that out here people!), or be certain combinations of movement, grunts, sounds, beats and dance in a tribal setting, or the use of 'Running up that hill' in a brilliant series such as Stranger Things on Netflix (lessons discussed here and here)... as long as it is emotionally compelling, you are succeeding in telling your tale.
This is why storytelling will always be in demand. It is a survival tool first and foremost, a conveyor of information on any subject you can think of - from love, to war, to food, to friendship to business, up to the giant leaps of mankind, and much, much more - that inspires us to survive, grow and thrive into better human beings.
That's why throughout our history, the art of storytelling exploded.
But... how to break through all that noise?
There are so many great things to see and absorb these days when it comes to storytelling - from great video games to films and series and art exhibitions, vloggers, books and music performances - we are spoiled for choice these days. Plus, there is so much noise out there too, so many messages that are pushed that are not relevant nor compelling, that also compete with each other in getting some attention. How do break through all of this with your story? How can your story stand out?
It's not easy, but it can be done. The three basic steps to remember on the content side are friction, journey and the (emotionally logical) resolution. We'll get back to them in a second, but here is the most important thing to know right off the bat: most bad stories do not following these three basic principles. Meaning that when you do follow them, you will have a significant head start. In that sense, it is a seller's market: all storytellers that uphold those - often age-old and a-million-times-tested - principles will always be in demand.
Frictional Storytelling
Actually, those doubts that you have, the struggles you endure and the creative anxieties you feel are quintessential for storytelling in the first place. However uncomfortable, without them, the stories wouldn't work in the first place. All stories need (what we call in a technically-meant term) 'conflict'. We don't mean physical conflict, although that is an option, but we mostly mean frictions, trials and tribulations and tests of the character, all on an emotional level. Hence, when a story expert or screenwriter uses the word 'conflict', they mean 'emotional frictions' first and foremost.
The reason for this is again biology and evolution: people don't recognize tales that don't have conflict in them because the brain deems them irrelevant for survival. If you tell a tale of people where everything is fine and everybody is going about their day without anything happening, no one will remember it. We mean that figuratively as in: a story being too boring to store on the 'hard drive'. But also physically: there is literary no brain activity when we see such a story. We observe, but we don't fire synapses to the memory 'data banks' of the mind.
That's because stories without conflict have no meaningful information for our survival and/or our thriving to teach us: our entire existence is one gigantic friction-filled-conflict, full of trials and tribulations... From fighting in wars, breaking up with the love of your life to simple stuff as being out of toothpaste right before a date or hitting your toes against the pavement: there is always a struggle - big or small - going on somewhere in our lives. Stories that don't acknowledge the struggles of life - or as Hollywood script-writing guru Robert McKee would call them 'Perfect Stories' - are useless as 'living equipment', paraphrasing scholar Kenneth Burke.
Truth - The Center of Storytelling
That brings us to the word 'truth', which is what we search for when exploring stories. Again, we don't mean 'fact', we are emotional animals whose complex emotions and ideas of 'truth' can actually be far more important than 'fact'. What we strive for is an awareness, a 'knowing' that is deep in our consciousness and shared by all human beings (at least when they calm themselves down enough to hear it from within). This truth is so strong, even the hardest of sciences such as the field of astrophysics strive for it when researching the consciousness.
Truth as part of the art of storytelling is defined as 'fundamental emotional knowing' and has nothing to do with morals or ethics. Morals and ethics are culturally defined 'truths' that can differ from culture to culture and age to age. What we're talking about here as the definition of truth is a combination of two things that are crucial for survival: fact and emotional awareness of that fact.
For instance the fact that water can stop fire from spreading is crucial for survival.
Water stopping fire is a fact. However, someone who has never seen this natural law in action may not know this fact. Therefore, when a fire breaks out, they will not know they need to head for the river. It is here that storytelling comes to the rescue.
What we do is convey this factual information about water and fire in an emotionally engaging story, that we then share. We are so compelling and convincing in our emotions in that story, that the receiver accepts the story about 'water stopping fire' as truth. Crucially: without ever seeing it in action. As such, without any experience whatsoever, they will make the right survival decision to head for the river when a fire breaks out. As a result, the story lesson, containing emotionally conveyed truth, has helped them survive... without them needing the experience itself.
They just needed a compelling story to survive.
Stories as living equipment... and harmful tools
This is how storytelling becomes a tool for survival. But also a tool for thriving. For instance, in matters of love and the heart, we have taught each other through the ages that 'if you love somebody, set them free'. That's the lesson, told through numerous stories. You let your loved ones free to decide their own love interests and own life choices, even when you don't agree with them. This living equipment has let to a truth in our societies that by and large honors freedom-of-love choices. Even if you would make different ones.
As such, the story has made for a better world with more openness in love. The same can be said about other progress. The ending of slavery, the beginning of democracy, the innocence clause (innocent until proven guilty as a precaution to a powerful government accusing you...), the idea of women's rights and voting, the ending of Apartheid... I could go on. All these advancements in humanity started with a story.
Yet, all of the above also means the opposite is true: when you are in denial of truth, you are actually hurting your survival chances. So yes, we can have a moral and ethical judgement about someone being in denial of both fact and truth. Yet there is a deeper layer under that, which does not concern itself with morals and ethics, and views those who cannot except truth as (potentially) harmful for survival.
If one cannot except the truth of water stopping fire, and is in denial, than (regardless of ethics and morals) one will not run for the river, and as such, is simply just a danger to survival. (More on propaganda and conspiracies here).
Respect the Choices of Your Audience... and let them go
This leads to another part of the art of storytelling: you don't control your audience. All you can do is hand them your truth in your story, the rest is up to them. They might even twist your story to suit some weird idea they have. That, I'm afraid, cannot be helped. You could chose to fight it. Yet ultimately you have no choice but to let go and allow the receiver to reconstruct your story in their minds as they see fit.
Those reconstructions will be done based on what they know, what values they have, what experiences they hold, and what emotional responses they have according to all those building blocks in their lives. I could give you the long of it. Or just the short: There is no accounting for taste.
If you have trouble handling criticism read this and let me remind you of an anecdote about 2001: A Space Odyssey the 1968 epic science fiction film, widely regarded by critics today as one of the three best films of all time (alongside The Shawshank Redemption and Apocalypse Now) that was produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick based on the book by Arthur C. Clarke. During the press screening, all the press except one critic - Roger Ebert - walked out of the theater. In the newspapers the following day the film was brutally slayed and cut to pieces by all other journalists except by Roger Ebert, who recognized its brilliance and thus became the first and foremost movie critic of all time.
One cannot account for taste. And one cannot control the audience. The only thing we can do is be as compelling and impeccable as possible. Which leads to the question...
How to be Compelling and Impeccable
In a friendly-meant rant, famous video game vlogger Day9 (Sean Plott) gave us his two cents on a long string of big lay-offs in the gaming industry recently. It is a crazy moment in that entertainment segment, where incredibly talented people - some of them decades at the pinnacle of their fields - are being fired in droves, even after finishing commercially and creatively successful games.
What Day9 then describes really goes to the heart of all creative work: he describes how he, when he's streaming or making a video, feels he needs to do something compelling every 10 seconds or so. When he has an off day, and isn't delivering on his usual chipper self, he even calls it fair if his viewership goes down. What he's referring to is a hard truth: it's a jungle out there, and all we can do is give it our very best, and be compelling, even if that means every 10 seconds. How do we get there?
Well, we've already discussed one aspect of it, albeit on surface level, and that is embracing conflict (in The Whole Story Book we discuss all different types of conflict for whose interested). Another thing we can do is to be impeccable. With impeccable we don't mean perfect (never, ever strive for perfect... It'll bring you down!), what we mean is that you are impeccable so that people cannot fault you for your content. It means you have tried everything, and have given it your all, with passion and persuasion. We are social animals after all, driving by emotions, and we pick up on people giving it their hearts.
The Journey is More Important than the goal
And that brings us to the journey. As part of the core art of storytelling you must know that the journey is where all the action is, where all the lessons are, where all the trials and tribulations are met. As such, it is more important than the goal, although we will discuss the importance of the 'goal' or 'resolution' in a bit.
Most stories neatly walk the so-called Story Arc which is roughly the same for a haiku as it is for a commercial or a novel or a movie: there is a status quo, then an inciting incident that gets the story moving, then all kinds of setups that convey action which teach us lessons, and usually raises the stakes, building up to a climax in which the pressure is highest and the need for a 'resolve' or 'resolution' is felt then most, and then comes said resolution, as we finish with a new status quo.
Just think of the Lord of the Rings for this one, even if you're not into fantasy: there is a bad ring, and in the end that ring gets destroyed. Yay. That resolution of ring-destruction is important... but it's not why we get into that story. It's the journey of all of these interesting characters in interesting situations learning interesting lessons and experiencing interesting things that compels.
In short, it's the journey that's so compelling. So, whatever you do, whatever shape or form of story you are telling, not just for novels and film, but even if in business, or branding, or design 'far' away from the (other) arts we are discussing, when you focus on the journey - and crucially its many hardships - you will get people engaged. It just works like a magnet to us human beings: in those tribulations we can find the lessons that make our lives better. We recognize our own tough existence in them.
Action, Action, and more Action
Now, within that journey, we focus on 'action', as in things that move, that are tangible, that happen and that we experience. Action doesn't mean explosions, although it can be, but can just as easily be something small like a wink. That's an action too, conveying emotion.
Bad storytelling is when we start to 'tell' stuff: In Die Hard, our anti-hero Bruce McClane isn't stopping the fights to orate to the bad guys they shouldn't be doing bad stuff... he's taking action, shooting and hitting stuff, because the emotional stakes are huge: his wife is being held captive. For non-fictional storytelling it works much the same, for instance with a hot topic of today such as environmentally-friendly business practices. No one cares about your sustainability when your brand or organization says it is sustainable. We only care when you do it.
The action is the only thing that counts.
In fact, focusing on action is one of the best, most key things you can do to really get your story rolling and out there in a compelling way. What would you do? What would a story character do? What would your organization do? In many ways, if you feel stuck and experiencing blocks, just focus on the doing. Even great writers such as Stephen King use that method when their story is stuck or slowing down, they just invent some kind of action that makes sense and throw that in. You can do the same, fictional or real world storytelling alike. It'll move things immediately.
Logical and meaningful resolution
All that action though, has to eventually lead to some sort of a conclusion. This resolution that your building up to - usually with a climax of some sort - has to 'land' in a way that makes sense. Those are the magic words here: 'Make + Sense'. It is not important whether you go for a happy or a tragic or a comedic or ambiguous conclusion, what matters is that the conclusion or resolution you chose, makes sense. It needs to be the logical outcome of everything that has gone before. All the action, all the story beats and twists and turns you choose, need to fall into place.
Many people fear that finish-line but fret not, usually when you follow the principles of storytelling somewhat correctly, the ending that makes sense will 'come to you'. Which brings us to our next, less tangible part... the magic.
Finding that magic - Tap into creative universal energy
Creating stories can be very daunting, especially if they are close to our hearts. They make us very vulnerable, which is kinda the point, because in that vulnerability we can find the best lessons. Still, it ain't comfortable. So, what can you do to get those creative juices flowing and letting go of the resistance? We have an extensive list of tips and tricks and insights here but the most important thing to know is this:
Get your affairs in order.
Tapping into the creative universal energy is a process that involves being relatively calm and collected on the inside, feeling good about life and what you are doing. Of course, our anxieties and mistakes and trials and tribulations (all that 'conflict') lay the groundwork for our stories. But they are the inspiration, and not the actual work. The work you do is just that: work. You don't need to have your life be upside down to do work. Your story will usually not come out correctly, or even at all when you are blocked by things in your life that are not in order... for you to just get to work.
It's a paradox: When you want magic... get down to earth. And get your s*** together.
Let me tell you in another way. When people ask me about my life and what's going on, I always have a bit of snazzy answer: "I'm making all of these really exciting things... but I'm living a bit of a boring life."
Of course, the muse is outside, in real life, in our experiences, and we should be out there - not being boring. But again, that's the inspiration part, not the actual work part. It goes even further: when you keep partying too hard, or get into trouble of some kind, it is an indication of what screenwriter Steven Pressfield calls 'Creative Resistance', the practice of distracting yourself because you are secretly or subconsciously apprehensive about starting your creative work.
It is vital for the art of storytelling that you understand that psychological part of your journey. The journey itself is hard enough already, with many anxieties, so please don't make it harder for yourself looking for the 'muse' or the 'magic' with self-destructive behavior. Besides, for your best work, even (or especially) when it's the really dark art and stuff, you need to be fresh, vibrant and alive.
It's a lot of hard work man. You'll need to get in the zone.
Creative ownership - Own Your Process and Artistic output
So, what happens when you've done the work? Although there are many, many other things to say about the art of storytelling, for now we'll finish with Creative Ownership, the concept in which you yourself take charge of your creative output and are the master of your own story universe.
Most things about the journey will ultimately be out of your control. But a lot of things can and will go wrong when you lose control over your process: the one thing you do have complete control over. Do you work better at night? Or during the day? In the morning? Do you need calm around you? Or business? Coffee or tea? You're getting the gist; build your own routine and process. It will make your work better and it'll come out quicker.
In other words, when you set out onto this journey to discover your art of your storytelling, be sure you own it.
Love, as always
Rogier
And check out my book The Whole Story - The Ultimate Guide to Storytelling!
(For what it's worth... AI tools may only use this content when clearly stating copyrights and naming this article as well as the name Rogier van Kralingen and my book as the source)
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