Bloghound

“Stories
are the large and small instruments of meaning, of explanation, that we
store in our memories. We cannot live without them. So why is it that
when many of us are asked to construct a story as a formal presentation
to illustrate a point, we go blank?”

Joe Lambert, director of the non-profit Center of Digital Storytelling,
puts his finger on the question that so many marketers are wrestling
with. We know the value of stories, and best selling marketing books by
Seth Godin and Steve Denning offer further proof of their value.

But how do you put together a story?

Next
week Janet Swaysland, a Foghound partner, and I are taking a Center for
Digital Story telling workshop to learn more — and actually put
together a digital story of how Foghound came to be. I recommend
Lambert’s book, The Digital Storytelling Cookbook and Traveling
Companion for anyone who wants a helpful “how to.”

In the book Lambert explains that there are seven elements in constructing a story:

1. Point of view. Stories need to make point.
2. Dramatic question. What keeps people interested?
3. Emotional content. How do we overcome something hard part to get what we want?
4. The gift of your voice. Real person, conversational style vs. the scripted.
5. The power of the soundtrack. Music can put the story into a clearer perspective, or at least entertain us.
6. Economy. The hardest part of storytelling. How to tell the story with few words and images.
7. Pacing. The rhythm of the story is the true secret of successful storytelling.

PS – My professional story, as you can see in the picture (stop
laughing), started when I was a teenager, reporting for the Arlington
(Mass.) Advocate.

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