Speaker A
Today we're talking about storytelling. If you want your content to perform better, you need to learn how to tell better stories. So in this video, I'm going to walk through my six favorite storytelling techniques that will massively improve your content. After watching this, I guarantee you will think differently about the way you write scripts and make videos. By the way, I'm Callaway. I've pulled over a billion views on short form video. I've got 500,000 followers, and I think about this stuff all the time. All right, let's dive in. Tip number one is what I call the dance. All great stories are like a dance between context and conflict. You give a little context: the characters are on a mission, they're doing something, and then—oh, oh no—here comes a conflict. You give a little bit more context: the characters have solved that first conflict, they're on their way, and then—oh, oh no—another conflict. This dance is how you keep the viewer locked in. It could be a feature film or a short form video; the dance is always there. Now, why does this work? Conflicts create open loops in the brain, and then context helps close those loops. The best explanation I've ever seen for how to tactically implement this dance idea is from Matt Stone and Trey Parker. They're the ones who created South Park. They were giving a talk at NYU. Watch this: we found out this really simple rule that maybe you guys have all heard before, but it took us a long time to learn it. But we can take these beats, which are basically the beats of your outline, and if the words "and then" belong between those beats, you basically got something pretty boring. What should happen between every beat that you've written down is either the word "therefore" or "but," right? So what I'm saying is that you come up with an idea, and it's like, okay, this happens, right, and then this happens. No, no, no. It should be this happens and therefore this happens, but this happens, therefore this happens. And that—as soon as we are able to—and literally sometimes we'll write it out to make sure we're doing it—we'll have our beats, and we'll say, okay, this happened, but then this happens, and that affects this, and that does to that, and that's why you get a show that feels like, okay, this to that to this to that, but this, here's the complication to that. So tactically, it's as simple as using the words "but" and "therefore" consistently throughout your script. That will create those open conflict loops. If you're using the words "and then," it'll feel like you're piling on detail after detail after detail, and the viewer will lose interest. Now, let's quickly take a look at one of my best performing videos. You'll notice there are four "but then" conflict loops in the first 30 seconds. Watch this: something crazy is happening with Stanley Cups. You ever seen one of these? Stanley Cups. Stanley Cup racking up 6.7 billion views. This 40-ounce Stanley quencher has become the Louis Vuitton of drinkware. It's a status symbol. New releases are selling out in seconds. People are flipping them for hundreds on eBay. Stanley, the company, 10x its revenue in 4 years off this single product. But the real question is how? How did they do it? How did Stanley Cups go from a construction worker's thermos to the dream Christmas gift? I got a Stanley. It's a wild story. So in 2019, Stanley was actually about to discontinue the cup, but this group of mom bloggers, the buy guide, knew they were making a huge mistake. So they cut a special affiliate deal with Stanley to bulk order 5,000 cups with a twist. Stanley had to make them pastel colors. Those 5,000 cups sold out in 5 days and completely changed their philosophy on design. But it gets even better. A few months ago, Stanley had the burning car moment. So I'm consistently setting up these head fakes to keep the storyline moving. Use this "but then" framework next time you're writing a script. I guarantee it'll uplevel that video. All right, tip number two is rhythm. I talk about this a lot, but there's this natural subconscious pacing and rhythm that is soothing to the brain. You can hear in my delivery I'm pretty decent with this, like natural ebb and flow. The rhythm of the syllables when I talk is soothing to listen to. Now, I used to be a rapper, and I was a drummer growing up, so this pacing and rhythm is kind of embedded in me, which I think is why I'm naturally good at talking in this way. But I do have this tactical way that can improve anyone else at rhythm. Take a look at this image, which was written by the legendary author Gary Provost. Now listen as I read this: this sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine, but several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. This writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It's like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen: I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences, and I use sentences of medium length, and sometimes when I'm certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the importance of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals, sounds that say, "Listen to this. It is important." So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the reader's ear. Don't just write words. Write music. You see how when all the sentences in the same row are about the same length, it creates this monotonous predictability? Subconsciously, people get turned off by this. This is what makes them churn to the next video. What you want is to use a variety of sentences and syllable combinations to create this unpredictable rhythm. Now, if you look at my script document, I write every sentence on a separate line. If you look straight down, it'll look like a jagged edge, and that confirms that I'm using different length sentences. Next time you're writing a script, try to look for this. If you see your document and all the sentences seem to end at around the same point, you don't have enough diversity, and it will feel like this monotonous plotting. All right, lesson three is tone. The most successful creators in every discipline are the ones with the most conversational tone. It really feels like you're right in the room with them. Emma Chamberlain ascended to stardom so quickly because she was naturally amazing at this. Casey Neistat's another one that's really good at this. When you watch his videos and you listen to him talk, it feels like he's right in the room with you. Now, the person I learned from most about this was Steve Jobs. If you watch his original keynote from the first iPhone launch in 2008, he is amazing at creating this conversational room-like you and him are just golf buddies shooting the breeze. Now, this is very intentional and took years of practice for him to hone in. He's also very gifted at it. By doing this, Emma, Casey, Steve, and others are able to break down that conscious barrier of personal identity when you watch. Instead of you questioning to yourself, "Am I getting sold to?" you get out of your own mind and just feel like you're in a conversation, like you would have to answer a question that they ask you directly in a way you forget where you are, and that's the magic of this. Now, I'm still working on this myself. I've only been making content for like 18 months, but if you go back to my first 50 videos, it really does feel like I'm talking at you instead of with you. The best tactical way to get better than this, other than just 100 reps, is to write and film your videos as if you're talking to one close friend. If you have to, just print out a picture of them and tape it on the bottom of your camera lens so you're literally looking at them as you record. And when you write your scripts, make it so like you're typing a text or recording an audio note directly to them. Over time, you'll get better at this conversational nature, but it will feel like you're having a one-on-one conversation.
