How to Tell Great Stories (+ examples)

Read Time: 1 min 40 secs

Hey — Ryan here.

In today’s edition we’ll be covering:

• How to Tell Great Stories (+ 2x Real-life Examples)

• In-Depth Scripting Breakdown

• 3 Main Takeaways

Storytelling is the new marketing playbook for 2026.

and only the  top 1% of creators and brands truly understand what it means.

Companies like Midday Squares, Pick ‘Em, and Odd Muse

who built 7-8 figure business all through telling their story on short-form…

The craziest part is that they all started from zero:

Zero revenue.

Zero followers.

If that doesn’t prove the leverage of storytelling on Instagram and TikTok

I don’t know what does…

So here’s two examples on A-level storytelling to takes notes on:

Example #1: @yuvirayz with 1.1M views

Script Breakdown 📜

Bold Claim + Intro + Social Proof + Series +  Listicles + CTA

On March 1, 2030, I'm going to win an Oscar.

Hi, my name is Juvia Redala, and you might think I sound delusional, but you know what?

That sounded delusional when I graduated school with a software engineering degree two years ago.

That I would gain over 2 million followers for the biggest film festivals in the world and work with studios and brands that I loved since I was a kid.

And if I could do all of that in two years, what makes you think I can't win this in five?

I know you're probably thinking, what does it have to do with winning an Oscar?

If you want to win an Oscar, you have to know how to act.

So welcome to a segment I like to call the History of Yuvi. I've been acting since I was a kid.

I've taken acting classes my entire life, and I've done tons of projects raiting from short films to TV shows. I've been actively auditioning for half a decade now.

So trust me when I tell you I've been working on my craft. Now, enough yapping.

Let's talk about the roadmap that's going to get me to this Oscar.

And this list is going to keep evolving. So for now, let's just call this the first draft.

Number one, book my first feature film.

I can't win an Oscar without being in a feature film, so that's kind of important.

Number two, book a lead or recurring role in a TV show.

Obviously, TV is not going to win me an Oscar, but I'm an actor. I love to act, and TV is definitely on my list.

And number three, create my own work.

You see, I'm also a writer, and instead of waiting for opportunities to come to me, I'm gonna keep doing what I've been doing my entire life.

Make my own. Now, those are three steps I need to hit in the first draft before I can go on a draft. 2, 3, 4, and then eventually to an Oscar.

We've seen tons of music artists document their journey, but never an actor.

So I thought, why not be the first?

So, yeah, hit that follow button if you want to be a part of this journey, and I'll see you in episode two of Road to an Oscar.

Example #2: @ddennishan with 5.1M views

ddennishan

69K followers

View more on Instagram

Script Breakdown 📜

Exposition + Shock Factor + Intro + Climax + Falling Action + Inner Resolution

It all started when this girl broke my heart.

AI Voice: Uh, Dennis, maybe you're oversharing a bit, no cap.

Hi, I'm Dennis.

I'm building an AI therapist that speaks Gen Z.

When I launched the app, I thought I'd just help a few people.

Then over 25,000 of you signed up, which broke the app a lot.

We weren't ready. We spent money we didn't have just to keep the app running.

I was freaking out. Emails were flooding in. Was I way in over my head?

Yes. Absolutely. Then some of you started reaching out, sharing your stories.

Breakups, grief, tough times.

You told me this little AI therapist thing was actually helping.

How could I give up? Then it hit me, even hard.

I literally built an AI therapist. I could just talk to it. So I did. Am I cooked?

AI Voice: Dennis, it's totally valid to feel overwhelmed, but take a step back.

Why did you start this? What's the reason that keeps you going?"

3 Takeaways to Tell Great Stories

1️⃣ Your Origin Story Is Your Moat: Both Yuvi and Dennis start with deeply personal stakes. Sharing your why builds emotional resonance and turns passive viewers into invested followers.

2️⃣ Self-Awareness is Key: It's not just what you say, but how you say it. Modern storytelling rewards people who are truly authentic to who they are on camera.

3️⃣ Storytelling is a Science: Like any other content format, ‘storytelling’ is in fact a science you can turn into a repeatable framework

Thanks for showing up this week ❤️

Ryan To