Ready to get help? - https://scenariosecrets.com/schedule Watch my entire free training here (to realize your own creative potential): https://scenariosecrets.com/case-study What we discussed in this fabulous interview: 00:00 Welcome and Introduction 00:40 How Teresa got started in instructional design. 02:39 The advantage of knowing what is available when first getting into ID. 06:27 What problem or struggle Teresa was trying to solve by joining the interactive storytelling program. ...

Is there a book or a concept you absolutely love and would be happy to share it with the world? Eva Daniels did just that. She developed an interactive story that contextualizes the theory, helps the audience work through the process in a safe setting... all through storytelling and scenarios.

What are the differences between games and gamification, how does that fit into the interactive storytelling framework? Here I reflect on my conversations with Moe Ash, Mohsin Memon and Karl Kapp. 

I had a conversation about scenario development recently, thought I'd share some of my insights with everyone... this episode gave me a chance to share some stories that would not have made it into a bulleted list. Enjoy!

Robin is a successful entrepreneur, instructional designer and mom of three boys. I loved digging into her journey, because I think the lessons from how she approaches life are spectacular and valuable for both men and women.  In this interview we talked about perseverance, investing in yourself, academia vs. corporate, her work and much much more... hope you enjoy and share. 

There's something really strategic in the "happily ever after" line at the end of a good fairy tale. But we, as learning designers can leverage this strategy to bring our interactive story to a satisfying closure and sell our audience on a future that could be theirs. Listen along with me...

The setup is crucial in letting your audience know who your hero is now, what mundane rut and routine they are in now, who they have been up until this very moment. Establishing this makes the transformation much more satisfying... and evident. All essentials for great interactive stories. 

Maybe the story I share in this podcast becomes your inciting incident? What can we do to make sure our efforts survive our departure... just some reflections on work and life as an L&D consultant. Enjoy!

Your character needs a wake up call, something that will make them get on the journey in the first place. Here I discuss the event, big or small, that can be the spark that makes them step out of their comfort zone to take on the challenges that stand in their way.  Plus some talk about Star Wars, George Lucas and Joseph Campbell. Enjoy!

Branching scenarios can easily get away from you, and sit there unfinished... what if there was a way to get rid of the overwhelm and just start with some constraint framework? Guess what, that's what we talk about in this episode... how to get Avalanche Branching under control, once and for all!!

Here is my hypothesis about feedback given to learners... It falls on deaf ears, at best they quickly skip over it to get to the next good part, or at worst they feel annoyed with it and resent the designer for being so patronizing. Let's talk about how to avoid this situation. 

I recently had a conversation with someone who in my mind was the epitome of lifelong learning, it made me reflect on my own journey and what it actually takes to grow as a human being. 

Conflict is a beautiful thing, it's the thing that makes the story worthwhile... if there was no conflict there'd be no story. But this might be the most challenging part of your interactive experience... but it doesn't have to involve other scenes, other people, high drama... sometimes the best conflict is all in our characters head. 

This episode is about a story shared in our coaching community. It's not about an interactive story, but it kind of is. Mostly it is a story of perseverance, persistence, optimism and being ready when the universe throws you a break.  “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” — Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

My number one issue was overcomplicating stories, but also not asking enough why questions - why does the hero want this? Why are they not going after it right now? What's getting in their way? All of these help you craft a better hero that all kinds of people can relate to, and help your story have meaning and stickiness in their minds. Inner motivation is really the key to creating a relatable character in my opinion. Enjoy this last episode on the "hero" but certainly not the last on...

The Hero is very important to a successful story, but the hero is nothing without a very clear and visible goal. Or as the storytelling nerds say... the outer motivation. So how should you think about this to make your hero and their goal something your audience will root for?

A fantastic conversation with Story Designer, Rance Greene. Rance is the author of Instructional Story Design, a practical guide for developing stories that train. He coaches, teaches, speaks and writes often on the benefits of stories to connect people to one another. Enjoy!

This episode is a little, just a little, off my beaten path of scenario design. It has to do with our mindset in L&D... how we're hurting our results, and hurting our learners by convincing ourselves of a reality that is based purely on our imagination. It's short, not too sweet, but candid and hopefully the jolt you needed today. Enjoy!

In this episode we continue exploring the hero in your story. How to make them more than just a name and a position. What strategies you can use to make them instantly relatable and someone your audience will care about. Also, reflections on Toy Story 4. Enjoy!

There's no story without a hero. There's no transformation without a hero. And, if your hero is someone people can't relate to... it might be all for naught. There's nuances to crafting a good hero, but we can always err on the side of simplicity. In fact, simplicity in this area might be the most difficult part... come explore with me. 

I love transformation stories... and with good reason, they make amazing experiences for us. And guess what, they can be amazing learning tools for our audience, IF we do transformation right.  Sidenote: The movie whose title I could not remember is Free Guy!! Go see it. 

There are essential ingredients to crafting a great story. There are elements that you can be loosey goosey on, not do so well and still create an OK story for your learners. But this one piece... this is one of the most important things to get right: transformation.  Here I dig deep into why I think it matters, what it can do for your learner, how it can enhance their buy-in, how I think it increases how persuasive and emotionally engaging your story is and much more. Enjoy!

I had a great convo with Rued Riis, "the Vyond guy" as we lovingly call him in the L&D world... and I had a couple of aha moments around the use of storyboards. These are my reflections on the matter.

In this episode I talk to Alexander Salas. He's an instructional systems developer and eLearning designer with 14 years of experience specializing in the blend of learning technologies and gamification for performance outcomes. We talk projects, contracts, SME's, gamification and escape rooms!