Jack Hart’s recently published Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Nonfiction can take your ability to tell the story of your personal brand to a whole new level.
Less than a week after it’s publication, Storycraft is already an Amazon Top 100 book in its category!
Must-read for brand-building success
Storycraft is must read for entrepreneurs, Internet marketers, career-driven recent college graduates, job seekers, and career changers.
Storycraft takes the mystery out of writing narrative nonfiction–the type of writing that’s necessary for building strong emotional bonds with readers, telling stories about personal brands in compelling, memorable ways.
Facts are not enough
Storycraft is important because it takes more than facts–factual information about your education, previous jobs, expertise, and interests–to compete with everyone else who is seeking the job, clients, or prospects you want for yourself.
To stand out from the competition and create an emotional resonance with prospective clients or employers, you need to:
- Capture their interest by setting the stage for a believable story your prospect can identify with.
- Maintain their interest the same way timeless literature, bestselling books, and Hollywood movies do–by describing an obstacle, overcoming the obstacle, and sharing the lessons revealed by the struggle.
- Provide details and descriptions that put readers into the unfolding action, ensuring that the story will be remembered and recalled.
Humans are hard-wired to respond to, and remember, stories–as opposed to bullet-points or pie-charts. Brain scans and MRIs reveal a “story center” in the brain that’s excited when individuals experience stories, opening neural paths to other parts of the brain.
A book that took 30 years to write
For decades, Jack Hart was writing coach and managing editor of the Oregonian. As a writing coach of a daily newspaper, Jack Hart helped reporters consistently deliver excellence and meet their deadlines, as described in his first book, A Writer’s Coach: The Complete Guide to Writing Strategies that Work.
Equally important, for over 30 years, Jack Hart was directly involved with several Pulitzer-prize winning stories that generated unprecedented reader response.
By analyzing what readers said about these stories of “everyday people,” and the challenges they endured, Jack Hart gained a deep understanding of how and why some stories have such a powerful impact on readers.
How you’ll benefit from reading Storycraft
After reading Storycraft, you’ll have a new understanding of:
- Story basics. You’ll learn the vocabulary of storytelling and the strategies and tools used to arouse reader interest and keep readers engaged. You’ll be able to use tools like story arc and plot points to construct your brand-building story.
- Recognition. After you’ve read Storycraft, you’ll read, listen, and view stories with more appreciation and understanding of how the article, book, movie, or broadcast was created. Whether you’re listening to Ira Glass’ This American Life, watching Cops!, or rereading Moby Dick, you’ll experience it with greater appreciation.
- Universals. It’s important to emphasize that Storycraft is about the universal elements of story-telling success. It will help you tell your story in a variety of media, including blog posts, background statements, podcasts, and YouTube videos.
You may never want or need to write a best-selling novel or narrative nonfiction book. But, knowing how to do it can provide the “tipping point” you need to re-evaluate your ability to convincingly tell the story of your personal brand, and how you help others achieve more success.
About:
Roger C. Parker will interview Storycraft author Jack Hart on August 16, 2011. This will be Roger’s 106th Published & Profitable’s author interview.
