Introduction to Storytelling – Notes

Storytelling is defined as the art of narrating stories to engage an audience.

Stories create engaging experiences that transport the audience to another space and time.
Stories have been central to human cognition and it has proved to be the most effective way of
communication since time immemorial. There is a bio-chemical reason why people love stories.
It’s the mode of communication our brains biologically prefer. When a good story is told the
brain comes alive because storytelling literally has a chemical effect on the brain that wakes it
up in order to absorb, digest and store information. Stories have the power to inspire, motivate,
and change people’s opinions. In short stories are the best possible way to deliver complex
information (data).

The steps involved in telling an effective data story

• Understanding the audience
• Choosing the right data and visualizations
• Drawing attention to key information
• Developing a narrative
• Engaging your audience

The Need for Storytelling

• Storytelling acts as an emotional glue to connect a diverse audience – It is
an important way to tap into the heart of the audience also conveying a
deeper message based on emotion.
• Information presented in a structured manner – Organizing information
into a definite format with a beginning (setting the stage), middle (the
challenge), and ending (solution to the problem and a new beginning)
works for many topics.
• Storytelling reshapes knowledge and helps communicate something
meaningful – Stories have been used to pass on knowledge. When the
knowledge gets embedded in the context of a story, it is transferred or
communicated to the listener in a unique way.
• Storytelling is persuasive and influential – It can persuade people to
execute plans towards a certain future or objective.
 • Helps transcend one’s current environment – Good storytelling can
transport people into another world.
• Storytelling achieves adding meaning to data - Many people perceive data
as meaningless numbers when data is disconnected to anything important.
But when the data is placed in the context of a story, it comes alive.
• Storytelling can be motivating for the audience – Inspire people to buy into
a mission or cause.

Data storytelling is a structured approach for communicating insights drawn from data, and
invariably involves a combination of three key elements: data, visuals, and narrative. When the
narrative is accompanied with data, it helps to explain the audience what’s happening in the
data and why a particular insight has been generated. When visuals are applied to data, they
can enlighten the audience to the insights that they wouldn’t perceive without the charts or
graphs. Finally, when narrative and visuals are merged together, they can engage or even
entertain an audience. When you combine the right visuals and narrative with the right data,
you have a data story that can influence and drive change.
Some easy steps that can assist in finding compelling stories in the data sets are as follows:
Step 1: Get the data and organise it.

Step 2: Visualize the data.

Step 3: Examine data relationships.

Step 4: Create a simple narrative embedded with conflict.

Conflict and Resolution

Conflict is the most exciting and engaging drive in any story. Every story or plot is centered on its conflict
and the ways in which the characters of the story attempt to resolve the problem. Conflict in a story is a
struggle between two or more opposing forces. Conflict in a story drives the plot forward towards a
resolution.

Storytelling for Audience

Seven pointers to become an engaging storyteller

1. Engross the audience in your story.

2. Link up with your personal story
3. Create suspense till end
4. Bring characters to life
5. Show, don’t tell
6. Build up a peek moment
7. Climax should have a positive takeaway