Learn to Master the Art of Storytelling, online May 17-21
It ain’t fluff. Storytelling helps people pay closer attention to your message, understand it faster, remember it longer and act on it more quickly.
Now you can grab attention, communicate more clearly, make your message more memorable and move readers to act at our Master the Art of Storyteller workshop — online, May 17-21.
“Excellent, kick-you-in-the-butt skills that I can use forever.”
— Patti Monsoor, public relations and marketing, Utah Valley University Woodbury School of Business
Read more rave reviews
What you’ll learn in our business storytelling training program
Whether you’re a corporate communicator, PR pro, sales marketing writer or content marketer, you’ll learn how to make your subject matter more compelling with a great story. In this workshop, you’ll learn step-by-step techniques for writing high-quality business stories. Specifically, you’ll learn how to:
Think Outside the Pyramid
Make your digital marketing content, social media posts, intranet articles, speeches and your other messages more fascinating and engaging when you:
- Lead with a bang with our list (with examples) of great leads.
- Avoid the “muddle in the middle” with five ways to organize the body of your piece.
- Leave a lasting impression with our three-step test for writing a satisfying ending.
Color Them Fascinated
Fun facts and juicy details might seem like the Cheez Doodles and Cronuts of communication: tempting, for sure, but a little childish and not particularly good for you. Not so. Concrete details are more like salad dressing and aioli — the secret sauces it takes to get the nutritious stuff down. In this learning experience, you’ll find out how to:
- Show and tell: Help readers understand your big ideas by way of your specific details.
- Play it SAFE: Six ways to add color to your message.
- Write to be read: Where to sprinkle “gold coins” throughout your message to keep readers engaged.
Play With Your Words
Neurologists call it “the pleasure of the text,” the reward readers get from figuring out figurative language. (It can be quite a reward: If your wordplay is funny enough, your readers’ brains even deliver a little dose of dopamine.)
In this session, you’ll learn how to:
- Polish your skills in our wordplay workout: Get “recipes” for creating 14 types of wordplay, from anagram to etymology to oxymoron. (And yes, that portmanteau does make your butt look smaller.)
- Get inspired by some of the world’s most creative headlines.
- Stop writing groaners: Learn techniques that let you come up with surprising lines — and leave the clichés to the hacks.
Make Magic With Metaphor
Metaphor has the power to persuade far better than literal language. It lets you say in five words what would otherwise take five paragraphs to explain. It makes readers’ brains light up, helps them think more broadly about your message — even (ahem!) makes you look more attractive.
But, as with other forms of magic, you’ll want to master a few tricks before you step onto the stage.
In this session, you’ll learn how to:
- Get an analogy during an interview by asking one simple question.
- Develop a metaphor with our simple, four-step process.
- Craft a compelling metaphor with our fill-in-the-blanks formula.
“I didn’t want it to end.”
— Gary Burris, public relations director, Tec Labs
Master the Art of the Storyteller
Stories are so effective that Og Mandino, the late author of the bestselling The Greatest Salesman in the World, says, “If you have a point, find a story.”
In this session, you’ll learn to find, develop and write stories that engage readers’ hearts and minds.
Specifically, you’ll learn how to:
- Find the aha! moment that’s the gateway to every anecdote.
- Start an anecdote with a bang — instead of a whimper.
- Find anecdotes in the making with “WBHA.”
“This workshop was truly one of the most useful ones I have attended.”
— Kelsey Wharton, science writer, OKED communications, Arizona State University
Learn more
Location & logistics
Join us via Zoom and Linkedin from 10 a.m. to noon Pacific on:
- May 17: Think Outside the Pyramid
- May 18: Color Readers Fascinated; Paint Pictures in Readers’ Minds; live coaching session
- May 19: Play With Your Words; Make Magic With Metaphor; live coaching session
- May 20: Master the Art of Storytelling; live coaching session
- May 21: Live coaching session
Can’t make a date? You’ll have on-demand access to the online workshop until June 21.
Fees
- Silver (workshop only): $1,195
- Gold (Silver + $300 worth of learning tools — Art of Storytelling, Get Good at Getting the Goods, Make Magic with Metaphor, People Power): $1,295
- Platinum (Gold +$297 subscription to Rev Up Readership): $1,395
- Diamond (Platinum +$750 private coaching session with Ann): $1,795
Please learn about our discounts, cancellation policy and more in our FAQ.
“I typically wouldn’t spend this much on a workshop, but this was so worth it.”
— Bonnie Leedy, CEO, School Webmasters
Save $200 until Dec. 31.
