Using storytelling to improve the flow of your podast

Do you ever struggle with planning your content? Do you want to move away from the aimless chatter and have more of a structure in your podcasts? Try using a narrative arc to plan out your episodes.

A narrative arc (or plot arc) is a common storytelling/writing structure that a story follows, guiding the progression from the beginning to the end and simply consists of the following:

Beginning

Introduce the topic or theme of the episode. Set the stage by providing some context or background information. Hook your listeners with an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a compelling anecdote.

Middle

This is where the filling in your sandwich goes, or the main part of your podcast.

Towards the end of the middle, build towards a climax.

Last quarter

This is where you add your climax/big reveal or most important/anticipated part of the podcast.

Ending

Have a very quick wrap up after the last quarter.

You want your main points to linger in your audience’s head giving them a taste for more. Make your ending as brief as possible and consider a call action or ask your audience a question.