Storytelling techniques
Various techniques are used in storytelling. One of these techniques is telling a personal story. In this case, the storyteller, in the course of telling the story, may decide to use his or her own story in the middle of the story. This is so as to bring a connection between that which he or she is saying and applying it to the real world. The other reason as to why a narrator may decide to use his or her own personal story is so as to make the narration captivating. When the audience gets to know a personal story of a narrator, this will make them motivated to hear the story as the fictitious story is now transformed to be real. The importance and advantage of telling a personal story is that it helps in bringing the storyteller closer to the audience.
Apart from telling a personal story as one of the techniques that is used in storytelling, the other technique is the creation of suspense. To accomplish this, the narrator applies various devices in telling the story. One of these ways is telling the story in a chronological manner while building it up to a climactic conclusion. In this regard, the storyteller clearly outlines the events that unfolded from the beginning but does not highlight how the events ended. Besides that, the other way in which suspense is created in a story is whereby the narrator drops the viewer in the middle of the action and then goes back to reveal how all these elements uncovered (Hockrow, 2015). In addition, suspense can also be brought about in a story by giving the audience a predictable story then suddenly taking a completely different turn of what was actually expected by them. The importance and advantage of the use of this technique is that it helps in jogging the mind of the audience, and this by them having many unanswered questions.
Last but not least, the other storytelling technique is creating a S.T.A.R moment (Ronnie, 2010). This is basically building up on something that the audience will always remember, S.T.A.R (Something They’ll Always Remember). To achieve this the narrator should try to be as dramatic as possible as this will make the point stick in the brains of the audience. Creating something that the audience will always remember can also be achieved through dramatization, creating provocative images as well as introducing shocking statistics. The importance and advantage of building up a S.T.A.R moment is that it helps in mobilizing the attention of the audience. An example, in this case, is stating that over 70% of people are asymptomatic to the coronavirus.
References
Hockrow, R. (2015). Out of order: Storytelling techniques for video and cinema editors.
Ronnie, M. C. (2010). Storytime. Hay House UK Ltd, 2010