Hey friends!
There’s a lot to go over in today’s newsletter, so let’s get right into it.
First off: Thinking In Stories, my storytelling course, is now open for enrollment! This course has been months in the making, and I’m so excited to share it with you today.
I’ve updated the landing page with the final curriculum, the course schedule, and the enrollment options. Head on over to check it out:
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Some background: Three years ago, I started More To That to share my ideas as stories. Since then, my posts have been read 2 million times from almost every country in the world. That still sounds absurd to me, but hey, I’m grateful.
I’ve learned a lot about storytelling over the years, and how it acts as a beacon for your thoughts. The ability to transform your ideas into stories is a magnetizing force, and this skill will only grow more valuable with time.
Thinking In Stories is a 3-week long course that shares everything I know about the craft. It will show you how to identify your best ideas, connect them together, and package the result into great stories that showcase your unique voice.
The journey is divided into 6 modules:
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These are the exact six steps I use for the stories on More To That, and now I want to share them with you.
As a creator, I get the struggle. It’s hard getting your ideas out there. You believe in the quality of your ideas, yet it feels like you’re broadcasting them into empty space. You know there’s a better way to structure them, yet you’re unsure of how to do it.
Thinking In Stories is my answer to that problem. You’ll learn how to create frameworks, craft analogies, and simplify your ideas so they can be shared. You’ll stretch your imagination by building worlds, drawing characters, and playing with perspective to engage your audience.
You will workshop ideas, exchange feedback, and dedicate the reflection time required to craft your best work.
And best of all, you'll be sharing your progress with a cohort of peers - each step of the way.
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Thinking In Stories starts on October 25th, and seats are limited (in fact, over half the spots are already full from early sign-ups). To secure your seat in the cohort, head over to the landing page and enroll today.
I’ve designed this experience to be a complete shift in how you view the art of storytelling. No more theory, no more abstractions, no more diagrams of the Hero’s Journey. It’s a step-by-step, practical method that will transform the way you communicate your ideas, leading to connections and opportunities that only great stories can build.
I'm excited to start this course, and I hope you'll join me.
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How to Frame Your Story (So People Care)
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As a companion to the launch, I will be hosting a free workshop on Tuesday, September 21st at 5 PM PDT. It's called How to Frame Your Story (So People Care), and it will explain how to frame your ideas to draw an audience toward them.
To make it concrete, I'll go over a framework I call the Insight Menu, and how I used it to frame my popular post, Travel Is No Cure for the Mind. That post is still one of the most popular stories ever published on Medium.
To join the free workshop, register here. You won't want to miss it.
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A Video Reflection to Share
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I recently published a reflection on something I call "The Performative Self." It's inspired by the work of sociologist Erving Goffman, and the stories we tell ourselves in this theater we call life.
I also elaborate on Thinking In Stories, my thought process in building it, and the experience you can expect. Enjoy:
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A Thought I've Been Pondering
I have a special email list where I share course updates and storytelling tips (you can sign up here if you're interested), and I shared a tip there a few days ago that I'll reiterate here:
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When you craft a story, spend the vast majority of your time framing the problem you want to address, not the takeaway. Delivering a takeaway without articulating the problem just makes you an information distributor, not a storyteller.
If you read Travel Is No Cure for the Mind again, you'll notice that I spent over 70% of it just walking you through the problem. What it feels like to experience the monotony of life. What it feels like to use travel to escape it. What it feels like to think it's the answer. Then what it feels like to realize it's not.
Only then do I deliver the takeaway, which is that you have to appreciate what's right in front of you. But without that big setup, that takeaway would have nowhere to land.
Remember, articulating the problem is everything in storytelling. Focus on that before anything else. |
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A Brief Parting Question
What’s your preferred medium of storytelling? Writing, speaking, drawing, etc.? And why?
Would love to know what kind of storytellers there are in the More To That community =).
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As always, hit reply to share any thoughts, to respond to the parting question, or to simply say hello. And if you have any questions whatsoever about Thinking In Stories, send them over my way. I love hearing from you.
Thanks for reading, and feel free to share this email with someone who might enjoy it. Have a great rest of your week!
-Lawrence
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