Before this course: Story Craft: long-form and brand storytelling (course 3.3.3), which builds on Short-Form Scripts (course 3.3.2) and Hooks, Scripts & Storytelling for Short Videos (course 3.3). You can already write a hook, a series, a long-form script with scenes and chapters, a case study and a brand narrative, and you can read a retention graph. This course asks a new question: how do you keep a team of writers telling stories that sound like one brand and stay true?
01
What a story director does
In simple words
A writer plays an instrument. A story director conducts the orchestra. The conductor does not play every note. The conductor makes sure everybody plays the same piece, in time, and that it sounds good.
Key facts
- A story director owns four things: the story bible (lesson 2), the standards (lesson 3), the people and briefs (lesson 4) and the learning loop (lessons 5 to 7).
- The director's work is mostly before and after the writing: clear direction at the start, honest feedback at the end.
- Good direction makes work easier to do, not just easier to check. Writers need to know the goal, the audience, the voice and the rules.
- You still write. A director who cannot write cannot judge writing. Keep one personal piece going at all times.
- YouTube Help says the key moments report in audience retention only appears when YouTube detects key moments, and the video must be at least 60 seconds long and have at least 100 views. In that report, Intro shows the percentage of viewers who kept watching after the first 30 seconds, dips are parts that were skipped or where viewers stopped, and spikes are parts that were rewatched or shared.
- A retention graph says where viewers left, not why. A director asks the writer first, then looks at the data (lesson 5).
- This course is education only. It does not promise any result.
Step by step
- Write the sentence that describes your team: "We tell [kind of stories] for [audience] on [platforms]."
- List the pieces of work you or your team already made (scripts, case studies, videos).
- Pick three of them and mark each one: does it sound like the same brand? Yes, Almost or No.
- For each Almost or No, write one reason (different tone, unclear promise, unchecked fact).
- Write which of the four things you own (bible, standards, people and briefs, learning loop) you have today, and which are missing.
- Choose one personal piece you will keep writing while you lead.
- Check: you have a one-page "director's map" with your team sentence, three rated pieces and the four owned things marked Have or Missing.
Watch on YouTube
Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.
LESSON 01What a story director does
Read the video script
[Host] "A writer plays an instrument. A story director conducts."
[Text on screen: Bible. Standards. People. Learning loop.] "You own four things: the story bible, the standards, the people and briefs, and the learning loop."
[Screen: three pieces of work] "Put three pieces side by side. Do they sound like the same brand?"
[Host] "If not, the answer is usually better direction, not a better writer."
Try it now
Make your one-page director's map, with your team sentence, three pieces rated for voice, and the four owned things marked Have or Missing.
ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude
Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.
For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.
I'm learning "Story Director: direct a storytelling team" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "What a story director does". What the lesson teaches: - A story director owns four things: the story bible (lesson 2), the standards (lesson 3), the people and briefs (lesson 4) and the learning loop (lessons 5 to 7). - The director's work is mostly before and after the writing: clear direction at the start, honest feedback at the end. - Good direction makes work easier to do, not just easier to check. Writers need to know the goal, the audience, the voice and the rules. - You still write. A director who cannot write cannot judge writing. Keep one personal piece going at all times. - YouTube Help says the key moments report in audience retention only appears when YouTube detects key moments, and the video must be at least 60 seconds long and have at least 100 views. In that report, Intro shows the percentage of viewers who kept watching after the first 30 seconds, dips are parts that were skipped or where viewers stopped, and spikes are parts that were rewatched or shared. - A retention graph says where viewers left, not why. A director asks the writer first, then looks at the data (lesson 5). - This course is education only. It does not promise any result. The exercise I'm working on: Make your one-page director's map, with your team sentence, three pieces rated for voice, and the four owned things marked Have or Missing. I'm stuck. Please: 1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example. 2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step. 3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "What a story director does" from the course "Story Director: direct a storytelling team". Here's what the lesson says: A writer plays an instrument. A story director conducts the orchestra. The conductor does not play every note. The conductor makes sure everybody plays the same piece, in time, and that it sounds good. The activity: Make your one-page director's map, with your team sentence, three pieces rated for voice, and the four owned things marked Have or Missing. Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words. Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Sources
- YouTube Help, audience retention and key moments: support.google.com/youtube/answer/9314415
My notes
Saved on this device
02
The story bible
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03
Editorial standards and the sign-off checklist
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04
Briefing writers, credit and rights
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05
Feedback, editing in layers and using data
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06
Running a story room and keeping one voice
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07
Teaching others, and your portfolio and review session
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Final project
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Quiz
What are the four things a story director owns?
The story bible, the standards, the people and briefs, and the learning loop.
What is a fact ledger?
A list of checked facts, each with its source and the date checked.
How long should a story bible be, according to this course?
Short enough to use: 3 to 6 pages.
What are the five editorial checks?
Truth, consent, claims, disclosure and voice.
What does privacy guidance say about consent and young children?
Consent should generally come from a parent or guardian.
Is tagging a brand or posting a discount code enough disclosure on its own, according to advertising regulators?
No, it is unlikely to be enough.
Name two things a disclosure should be.
For example prominent, visible without a click, on every platform, in plain language.
In what order should you edit a script?
Story first, then scenes, then lines.
In most countries, who usually owns copyright first, and what about work made in the course of employment?
Usually the creator; work made in the course of employment is often owned by the employer, but rules differ, so check yours.
What are moral rights, in this course?
Rights that stay with the author even after copyright is transferred; how they work differs by country, so check yours.
What are the three parts of the feedback frame?
What worked, one main problem and one next step.
What does a good teaching session include?
A clear goal, one idea, one example, one practice task and one check.
EX
Final exam
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CE
Certificate
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