Long Story Short: The Only Storytelling Guide You'll Ever Need

by Margot Leitman

I would rephrase this saying to: “Your story is only as strong as its truths.”

Don’t make up your story. You know when a person is lying to you.

In storytelling, you will be celebrated for revealing the truth.

Trust the intelligence of your audience

In live storytelling, there is no fact-checking. We just have to take your word for it.

So, in order to recount the story to the best of your ability, keep whatever true details in there that you can remember.

What if the timeline of my story is confusing? Is it okay to fudge that to make the audience understand it all a little better? A: I say yes!

It’s often a good idea to narrow down the number of characters in your story.

I always tell my students, if there were five people in the car, but the story is about the screaming fight you got in with your best friend—cut the other three people.

TIP: If there are too many people in your story who all represent the same thing, combine them into one.

Another idea is, instead of calling the three people in your story Lenny, Karl, and Pete (which is a lot for an audience to keep track of), try nicknaming them via interesting characteristics. It’s a lot easier for an audience to keep track of Dreadlocks, Afro, and Hemp Necklace rather than Lenny, Karl, and Pete. Also, it gives us a fun visual and protects their identities.

You can also nickname characters by using celebrity/public-figure look-alikes. Rather than saying, “Sally had a pudgy figure, round eyeglasses, and a bald spot,” you could refer to the Sally character as a “female Ben Franklin.” Name protected, laugh built in, and strong visual accomplished!

If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything. —MARK TWAIN

I am sure we all have this friend—the friend who talks and talks and talks about his/her own life incessantly and never asks about yours. You listen to him/her go on and on and think, “When are they going to ask about me?” You probably detest listening to this person. So in storytelling, you must do everything in your power to prevent yourself from being this person. Remember, no one cares about your life

You have to trick people into caring about your life. You have to somehow make them think that your life is just like theirs. Once you do that, they will listen to anything you have to say. You can’t make your listeners feel like they’re excluded from your story. They must feel like they’re a part of it.

By starting with a question (which is a fun way to start a story but not a rule to abide by), I invite the audience into my world.

Also, by admitting I was a broke student studying abroad, rather than a posh princess, I am more relatable, and therefore, I am well on my way to engaging the audience with my personal story with universal themes.

Universal Theme: Never give up. Yours might be: Stay true to your convictions. Or: True friends can be found everywhere. Or: Eventually, if you are patient, redemption will come.

but what appeals to us about the movie is the relatable themes: frustration, anger, injustice, loyalty, and hope.

Plot: What happens in your story. Think of this like a TV Guide description of your story. (Should be the same for every listener.) • Universal Theme: The message behind your story. (May vary by listener.) • Point of Entry: The moment the listener applies your story to his/her own life and becomes even more engaged. (Will vary by listener.)

TIP: The next time you’re watching a scripted TV show or movie, or reading a book, and you’re really enjoying it, think about why you like it. How does it apply to your own life? What are the universal themes? Be sure to do the reverse too. If you don’t like something, why not? I bet it’s because you don’t feel included.

The best way to do something is to do it.

Beginnings are hard. This is why so many of us stay in jobs we don’t like, relationships that aren’t working, etc. We do this because the prospect of beginning something new is often scarier than sticking with something old and stale.

My literary agent has a tattoo that says “Begin anywhere.” Of course someone in the book business would have this. In that world, often the hardest part is simply starting to write.

Why not just start your stories like you’re conversing with a group of friends? Why does telling a story have to be so formal?

Option 1: Start your story with a little intro about yourself and then get right into it

Option 2: Start your story as if your audience is your best friend and you’re letting your BFF in on a little secret

Option 3: Start your story with a thesis statement about yourself and then tell a specific story that proves your thesis to be true

Make a thesis statement about your love/sex/dating life, then tell a story that proves it. If that’s too tough to narrow down, declare a thesis statement about your relationship to travel or money.

Remember, a story is not a list, so I don’t want twelve short examples of how you’re afraid of commitment; I want one story in great detail that proves this.

Indifference is the enemy of storytelling. If you don’t feel strongly about what you are talking about, the audience won’t care about it either

You don’t just have to tell stories about the wildest events of your life; you can tell stories about small things that you truly care about.

In general, don’t portray anything that says “I’m too cool and I don’t care.” —PAUL FEIG, director, author, creator of

As listeners, we often care more about how you felt about what happened than what actually happened.

Feeling strongly towards or against something/someone can make your story soar

No one likes being told how to feel. We feel things organically, or we don’

When doing this exercise, try to think of the dumbest thing in the world that makes you cry.

The object of figuring out what makes you cry is not to tell the story of the most horrific thing you can think of but to find the humor in heightened emotion.

Every moment in life is a learning experience. Or what good is it, right?

When trying to convey a deeper message within a true story, the best storytellers sneak it in without being too heavy-handed. Otherwise, you risk coming off as preachy or sappy.

PHRASES THAT MAKE ME GAG WHEN HEARING PEOPLE TELL STORIES: • And then it hit me. • And that’s when I realized … • And then it happened. • And now I know … • My point is … • The moral of the story is … • So, what I learned was … • The takeaway is

Your point, or moral, or deeper message, should be known to you, to drive the writing and telling of your tale, but in my opinion, you should keep it to yourself.

Whatever your universal theme is, you should be able to explain it to yourself in just a few words. It’s your secret weapon when you tell your story. You never need to reveal it.

Remember, it’s not crucial that your audience gets your point, just that they get a point. Above all, what really matters is that you entertain, move, and affect them.

I think a lot of heavy-handed storytelling comes from lack of self-confidence. The storyteller doesn’t trust that his/her story is “working,” so often he/she will really force the point.