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The most important objective in storytelling requires keeping the audience’s attention engaged in the moment to moment as the plot unfolds. Some storytellers have an intuitive understanding of how to maintain this attention, but the rest of us need to develop those skills. Previously, I introduced the strategy of getting the audience’s curiosity engaged in a question so that their interest leads them toward the promise of answers. Generically, we want them interested in “what

What’s the narrative? What’s the story? What’s the difference? I’ll ask a student “what’s the story?” and I’ll invariably get a laborious account of the plot. “No, the story. What’s the ‘story?'” “Oh,” they say… and then their eyes glaze over as they fall into a repose that I assume is thoughtful contemplation. I work with them endlessly on being able to tell me what their story is about in three sentences or less. Not easy. Changes often. But necessary. Narrative is a whole

Okay, so what is the difference between story and plot? And is it really an important distinction? And most important, how does the distinction help tell a story? Let’s try a metaphor: Story is like the ingredients to a recipe, while plot is how you use those ingredients to create the meal. Got to have good ingredients, but if you don’t cook it right, your audience isn’t going to think it tastes very good. And sometimes, really good cooks can make even the blandest ingredient

These books are all a must when it comes to learning about storytelling and directing. “Making Movies” by Sydney Lumet If you want to find a wealth of sage advice about directing movies, here’s an immanently readable and anecdotal page turner by one of the greats in the business. Master craftsman Sidney Lumet gives up so many hard won secrets that would otherwise require volumes of texts on the subject. It may not spend a lot of time on the finer details of the decision-makin