Craft a Compelling Story

Use the storytelling workflow to craft compelling narratives using proven story frameworks, emotional psychology, and platform-specific adaptation.

When to Use This

• Creating product or brand narratives
• Writing pitch decks or investor presentations
• Developing user stories or case studies
• Communicating change or vision
• Crafting marketing content or campaigns

When to Skip This

• Purely technical documentation
• Simple factual reporting without narrative need
• Extremely short formats (headlines, taglines)

Prerequisites

• BMad Method with CIS installed — Sophia is part of the Creative Intelligence Suite
• A story purpose — Why you’re telling this story
• An audience — Who needs to hear it

Steps

1. Load Sophia

Start a fresh chat and load the Storyteller:

/cis-storytelling

2. Define Your Story Purpose

Sophia will ask about your story. Be clear about intent:

Good story purposes:

• “Persuade investors that our market opportunity is massive”
• “Inspire employees to embrace a new direction”
• “Help users understand how our product changes their life”
• “Explain a complex technical concept in relatable terms”

Less effective:

• “Write about our product” (no clear purpose)
• “Tell our company story” (too vague)

3. Understand Your Audience

Sophia explores who you’re speaking with:

Audience Question	Why It Matters
Who are they?	Shapes language, tone, references
What do they believe now?	Identifies gap to bridge
What do you want them to feel?	Emotional journey design
What should they do?	Call to action clarity

4. Choose Your Framework

Sophia selects from 25 story frameworks:

Framework	Best For
Hero’s Journey	Transformation, overcoming obstacles
StoryBrand	Customer-centric marketing
Three-Act Structure	Classic narrative arcs
Before-After-Bridge	Simple problem-solution stories
The Pixar Pitch	Emotional, character-driven narratives
Inverted Pyramid	News-style, impact-first

Sophia’s Voice

Sophia speaks like a master bard—flowery, whimsical, every sentence enraptures and draws you deeper into the narrative.

5. Craft Your Narrative

Sophia guides you through:

Story Element	What You’ll Create
Hook	Opening that grabs attention
Characters	Relatable protagonists and antagonists
Conflict	The problem or tension
Journey	The path through struggle
Resolution	The satisfying outcome
Transformation	How the world changed

6. Adapt to Platform

Sophia tailors the story for where it will live:

• Pitch deck — Concise, slide-by-slide narrative
• Blog post — Scannable, with narrative arc
• Video script — Visual storytelling with dialogue
• Social media — Micro-narratives for feed format
• Email — Personal, direct storytelling

What You Get

Output saved to _bmad-output/story-{date}.md:

Section	Contents
Story Framework	Which structure was used and why
Audience Profile	Who the story is for
Emotional Arc	The journey you want them to feel
Complete Narrative	Full story with vivid details
Character Development	Voice, motivation, transformation
Platform Adaptation	Formatted for your chosen medium
Impact Plan	How to measure effectiveness

Example

You: /cis-storytelling
Sophia: 📖 Greetings, traveler. What tale shall we weave?
You: We need to tell our product story for a pitch deck.
     Our app helps people manage anxiety.
Sophia: Ah, a noble quest. Tell me—who suffers from
       this anxiety, and how does your solution become
       the hero they've been waiting for?
You: [Explains user struggle and solution]
Sophia: [Selects Hero's Journey framework]
       Let us craft your protagonist—someone whose
       anxiety keeps them from living fully.
       [Develops character and emotional stakes]
       [Creates narrative arc with tension and release]
       [Adapts story for pitch deck format—slide by slide]

Sophia’s Memory

Sophia remembers your story preferences and past narratives in her sidecar. She learns your voice and builds on previous stories over time.

Tips

Best Practices

• Start with why — Purpose before plot
• Make it human — Concrete details beat abstract concepts
• Find the universal — Personal stories with universal truths resonate widest

Avoid Common Mistakes

• Don’t bury the lead — Hook readers immediately
• Don’t list features — Tell how lives change
• Don’t overwrite — Every word must earn its place

Next Steps

After storytelling:

• Use presentation design (coming soon) to create visual decks
• Apply innovation strategy (/cis-innovation-strategy) to strengthen business narrative
• Use brainstorming (/cis-brainstorm) to generate story variations

Providing Context

For best results, provide brand or product context via the --data flag:

workflow cis-storytelling --data /path/to/brand-guidelines.md

Sophia will use this context to maintain brand voice and consistency.