Storyteller Quick Tip : The STORY writes the plot. Not the other way around

Storyteller's Tip: The Story Writes the Plot. Not the other way around.

The PLOT is the who, what, when, where, and how. The STORY is the why.

Without understanding the story or having some sense of the theme or the greater lesson, it is impossible to talk about the plot in a way that makes sense or has any meaning - because how would you decide whether something that happens was important or relevant to a person if you don't know what that person's actual internal struggles and weaknesses are, or why the events matter to them?

Storytelling is about more than just knowing how to captivate an audience. When you understand storytelling you understand how we create the lives we live through the decisions that we make (or refuse to make).

Storytelling, when done effectively, doesn't just show you how certain events must unfold in a story - it tells you WHY - and this is the reason why people end up repeating the same cycles of problems, addictions, and bad fortunes - because they focus on the plot happening to them but never ask why they keep setting themselves up for the same events - as though they were some undeveloped character trying to reach the next chapter of the story but constantly failing to learn the lesson of the current one.