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Storytelling

Structure: how to build a story people remember

Learn the story structures that make audiences stay until the end — for articles, videos, podcasts and social media.

Pahana Media · All Levels · 18 lessons

Online + in-person workshops

Structure: how to build a story people remember

What you'll learn

  • Use classic story structures: three acts, the hero's journey and the inverted pyramid
  • Write openings that grab attention in the first seconds
  • Build tension and keep your audience until the end
  • Turn interviews, facts and events into a clear story
  • Write endings people remember
  • Adapt one story for articles, video, podcasts and social media
  • Join the Pahana Media community after the course: a shared chat group with journalists and creators in Sri Lanka and around the world

This course includes

  • 12 video lessons
  • 1 article
  • 4 quizzes and practice assignments
  • Hands-on in-person sessions
  • Watch online on phone or computer, at your own pace
  • Certificate from Pahana Media on completion

Course content

7 sections • 18 lectures • --h --m total length

  1. 01 Getting started 2 lectures
  2. 02 Classic story structures 4 lectures
    • Video The three-act structure --:--
    • Video The hero's journey --:--
    • Video The inverted pyramid for news --:--
    • Quiz Quiz: name the structure
  3. 03 Beginnings 2 lectures
    • Video Hooks and openings --:--
    • Assignment Practice: rewrite an opening
  4. 04 The middle 2 lectures
    • Video Building tension --:--
    • Video Characters and conflict --:--
  5. 05 Endings 2 lectures
    • Video Endings people remember --:--
    • Assignment Practice: structure a full story
  6. 06 One story, many formats 4 lectures
    • Video Structure for articles --:--
    • Video Structure for video and podcasts --:--
    • Video Structure for social media --:--
    • Quiz Final quiz
  7. 07 Workshop and certificate 2 lectures
    • In-person Hands-on storytelling workshop (date and location by email)
    • Article Your certificate and joining the Pahana Media community

Requirements

  • No previous experience needed
  • A notebook or a computer for writing
  • Ability to attend the in-person workshop

Description

Why do some stories stay with us for years while others are forgotten in seconds? The answer is structure. In this course, you will learn the proven story structures used by journalists, filmmakers and writers — and how to use them to make your own work clear, gripping and memorable.

You will practise turning raw material — interviews, facts, events and personal experiences — into stories with a strong opening, a clear journey and an ending people remember. The techniques work for news articles, video, podcasts and social media posts.

The course combines online lessons with hands-on in-person workshops. It suits beginners and experienced storytellers alike. When you complete it, you receive a certificate from Pahana Media.

Location and dates of the in-person sessions are shared with enrolled students by email before each session.

Who this course is for

  • Journalists, writers and content creators
  • Video makers and podcasters
  • Marketers and communication teams
  • Anyone who wants to tell better stories

Instructor

Pahana Media

Pahana Media