Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

Chapter 2. Lessons from Myths and Movies

Incorporate Story

All types of writing, including presentations, fall somewhere in between two extreme poles: reports and stories. Reports inform, while stories entertain. The structural difference between a report and a story is that a report organizes facts by topic, while a story organizes scenes dramatically.^[8] Presentations fall in the middle and contain both information and story, so they are called explanations.

	Documentation Informational and factual, emphasizing accuracy and exhaustive details, facts, and figures	Oral Delivery Persuasive and motivating, emphasizing explanation and making the meaning clear	Cinema and Literature Experiential and emotional, emphasizing evocative and implied information
Structure	Topical, hierarchical	Dual, alternating between facts and storytelling	Dramatic (exposition, rising action, climax, denouement)
Activities	Survey, collect, record, evaluate, notify, update	Unfold, simplify, clarify, interpret, illuminate, elucidate	Experience, express, emote, sense
Result	Findings, evidence, facts, details	Motivation, activation, engagement	Memories, links, associations
Delivery	Communicate in a plain, direct, and precise manner	Communicate in a believable, credible, and engaging manner	Communicate in an expressive and theatrical manner

It's become the cultural norm to write presentations as reports instead of stories. But presentations ...