Engaging Stories, Expanding Audiences: Top Three Methods

The Best Storytelling Techniques to Grow Your YouTube Channel

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

In the distracting world, we live in, you need to be a good storyteller to grow your YouTube channel. Your audience is not going to stick around to watch your whole video if your content isn’t enticing or relatable. If you want to get people to watch all your videos, you need to get them emotionally invested with your stories.

Here are 3 methods for creating an awesome story:

• Method 1: CREATE SUSPENSE
• Method 2: USE EMPATHY
• Method 3: TAKE THE AUDIENCE ON A MEANINGFUL JOURNEY

1. Create Suspense

The hero has an objective, but the plan might fail.

The likelihood of something going wrong is what makes a story suspenseful. When you tell a suspenseful story, your audience will have a heightened focus and a strong motivation to continue listening. They want to know if the hero succeeds. Keep the audience waiting and expecting. Don’t give away the ending right away.

What Does a Suspenseful Story Sound Like?

When we talk about a story that is dragging on, it is because there is no suspense. There is nothing at stake, there are no obstacles, there is no problem and, with no problem, there is no promise of resolution.

Here are a few examples you can use to pump more suspense into your story:

- Address a fear (example: being alone for the prom)

- An objective (example: asking the crush out to the dance)

- Consequences of failing (example: being embarrassed in front of the whole school)

- Limited time (example: prom is next week)

- Obstacles (example: the crush has an aggressive ex.)

You can feel your heart rate speeding up simply thinking about the character’s story in the example. Does it have a happy ending or not? We want to know!

Raise Questions After Questions

A good storyteller knows that as soon as they answer a question for their audience, they need to present another one. The audience will always need to have a puzzle in their mind, one that needs to be solved. That is what will keep their interest.

For example: If the hero ends up going to the prom with his crush, the next big question can be: Will they kiss at the last dance?

This continues building on the tension and increasing the stakes evermore.

Check out the suspenseful story from YouTuber, MissRemiAshten . The way she tells the story, we discover more and about her psycho neighbor and the incident gradually. A little bit of information about the neighbor is revealed at a time… not all at once.

Include a Cliffhanger

We’ve all had those moments at the end of an intense television show where we are shouting at the screen because it suddenly cut to black as the main characters were left in a precarious position. That emotional outburst is brought to us by a good cliffhanger, and a good cliffhanger can assure us that the audience will return for more.

But there needs to be more! A cliffhanger is a promise to the viewer that eventually they will be rewarded for their patience and it will be satisfying.

In this cliffhanger from Casey Neistat, he simply asks us a question, “Was that good?” This calls upon us to recall all the awesome YouTube videos we have seen created by filmmakers that aren’t considered “prestigious.” A cliffhanger does not have to end with an epic reveal; it can wrap up with loose ends and allow the audience to tie it up themselves.

How to Deliver a Good Cliffhanger

Applying good cliffhangers to your YouTube videos is a balancing act. You want to draw your audience in, but you also need to have a payoff that is worth the wait.

Done well, a cliffhanger will leave your audience wanting more. Done poorly, a cliffhanger will leave your audience feeling to mislead and a little ripped off, hesitant to listen to more stories from you.

A good cliffhanger does not have to be life or death, but it does have to be the moment the story has been leading up to.

Before you start telling your story, consider the key details that are most impactful.

Once you have the points you want to hit, plan out the reveal. Weave the story together, but withhold the pivotal details until the cliffhanger. Thendeliver it on camera confidently .

Here are two ways you can present your cliffhanger for amplified effect:

1. Slow Down and Have Pauses

As your story intensifies, bring the pace down — or stop completely. The silence becomes the cliffhanger. It can last a second or more, depending on how confident you are in the tension you have built.

Your next words or shots can be the reveal. If you are skilled enough, you can lead into another story one that connects to the previous. If you are trying this, make sure that in the end, the payoff has double the impact. The reveal needs to be twice as powerful if you are going to take the audience on another journey before wrapping up and answering the long-awaited questions.

2. Use Repetition

Whether you want to misdirect your audience or hammer home a point, using repetition throughout your story will help you build the tension you need to establish the cliffhanger.

In this example, we see YouTuber, A little bit of Monika uses both pace and repetition in her storytelling method.

The video starts off at a speedy pace, all the way until the last scene where the confrontation occurs. That’s her slowing down the story so that we are all anticipating the reveal. Is she or is she not actor, Saoirse Ronan?

Through this short video, the repetition of the name is used to show her confidence that her roommate is not who she said it is. The more affirming she becomes, the more likely we as the viewers are going to side with her. This is a simple example of misdirection.

The more you say something or show something, the more important it becomes for the audience — at least, you want it to appear important.

2. Use Empathy

A storyteller must be empathetic.

If your audience cannot empathize with what you are communicating, it would not have the intended effect. Storytelling is all about taking people out of their bodies and putting them in someone else’s.

If you are telling a story about the time your car broke down, you want people to empathize and feel the helplessness of being stuck on a highway, waving cars down to help.

Empathy makes people feel more human. Telling a story people can relate to, even if it didn’t happen to them, is a sign of a quality storyteller.

Don’t Use Too Many Facts and Figures

If you began your story by saying that 1/1,000 cars on the highway break down, that doesn’t evoke any major emotion. There is nothing human about it.

It’s an interesting stat, sure, but the audience is unsure how they should respond. Is that a lot? Is that because of the highway? Is it because of the drivers? Nobody knows… it’s numbered with no context.

However, if you told the story about that time you had to abandon your vehicle and walk down the highway in order to make your important appointment. Suddenly, the audience can empathize with the tribulations you have gone through.

Facts and figures are useful in reports, but not as much in compelling stories.

Evoke the Senses

If I talk about hot melting chocolate, standing in the rain, or the smell of your grandmother’s bedroom, your senses are activated. From all your life experiences, your brain is able to form familiar sensations without any physical changes to your surrounding. That’s the power of storytelling.

Good storytellers use these sensory details and descriptive imagery to spice up a story. This draws the audience in and gives them a more immersive experience when listening to your stories.

Ask yourself these questions:

- What does it smell like?

- What can you hear?

- What do you see?

- What can you physically feel?

This example from YouTuber, Kiril Dobrev perfectly exemplifies what sensory igniting storytelling can do. He illustrates the sensation of being in Hong Kong, not simply through visuals but physical motions and audio effects.

Use Metaphors

As a YouTube storyteller, sometimes you will have to communicate complex ideas. When that happens, use a metaphor to increase the impact.

If you are telling a story about how much you dislike your teacher, you can list off all the ways she is unlikable or you can sum it up with a line like this: “My teacher makes the school a prison.”

That is a metaphor comparing school to prison. Most people haven’t been to prison, but understand what the metaphor is insinuating. School is not a fun place to be because of that teacher.

By connecting two different things, you allow the audience to paint the image in their mind quickly. It doesn’t take a lot of words to create a memorable metaphor. I encourage you to use metaphors anytime you need to address something complicated.

3. Take the Audience on a Meaningful Journey

Perhaps the most important element of a good story is that the journey is meaningful.

- Is it educational?

- Is it entertaining?

- Is it motivational or inspiring?

Knowing how you want to leave your audience feeling is foresight that will improve your YouTube storytelling abilities. Before you start telling your tale, ask: How do I want to change my audience?

YouTuber, Jamie Windsor tells a few stories connected to creativity and plagiarism. Anyone who has ever created anything can relate to his story and thus his audience can empathize.

It is also clear as a viewer that at the end of this 15-minute long video, his audience will have gone on a meaningful journey with him.

His story is a cautionary tale. He wants to educate us so that we can avoid making the same mistakes he did. He used his real-life experience to teach us and that makes it a meaningful video to watch. That was a good story.

Are there any YouTubers that you consider to be fantastic storytellers? Please share it in the comments box below.

Select a Versatile Video Editing Software to Stand Up from Numerous YouTubers

Users worldwide highly recommend Filmora because it comes loaded with various features, which helps to discover the editing skills, add an image to the imagination, and empower creativity.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

In the distracting world, we live in, you need to be a good storyteller to grow your YouTube channel. Your audience is not going to stick around to watch your whole video if your content isn’t enticing or relatable. If you want to get people to watch all your videos, you need to get them emotionally invested with your stories.

Here are 3 methods for creating an awesome story:

• Method 1: CREATE SUSPENSE
• Method 2: USE EMPATHY
• Method 3: TAKE THE AUDIENCE ON A MEANINGFUL JOURNEY

1. Create Suspense

The hero has an objective, but the plan might fail.

The likelihood of something going wrong is what makes a story suspenseful. When you tell a suspenseful story, your audience will have a heightened focus and a strong motivation to continue listening. They want to know if the hero succeeds. Keep the audience waiting and expecting. Don’t give away the ending right away.

What Does a Suspenseful Story Sound Like?

When we talk about a story that is dragging on, it is because there is no suspense. There is nothing at stake, there are no obstacles, there is no problem and, with no problem, there is no promise of resolution.

Here are a few examples you can use to pump more suspense into your story:

- Address a fear (example: being alone for the prom)

- An objective (example: asking the crush out to the dance)

- Consequences of failing (example: being embarrassed in front of the whole school)

- Limited time (example: prom is next week)

- Obstacles (example: the crush has an aggressive ex.)

You can feel your heart rate speeding up simply thinking about the character’s story in the example. Does it have a happy ending or not? We want to know!

Raise Questions After Questions

A good storyteller knows that as soon as they answer a question for their audience, they need to present another one. The audience will always need to have a puzzle in their mind, one that needs to be solved. That is what will keep their interest.

For example: If the hero ends up going to the prom with his crush, the next big question can be: Will they kiss at the last dance?

This continues building on the tension and increasing the stakes evermore.

Check out the suspenseful story from YouTuber, MissRemiAshten . The way she tells the story, we discover more and about her psycho neighbor and the incident gradually. A little bit of information about the neighbor is revealed at a time… not all at once.

Include a Cliffhanger

We’ve all had those moments at the end of an intense television show where we are shouting at the screen because it suddenly cut to black as the main characters were left in a precarious position. That emotional outburst is brought to us by a good cliffhanger, and a good cliffhanger can assure us that the audience will return for more.

But there needs to be more! A cliffhanger is a promise to the viewer that eventually they will be rewarded for their patience and it will be satisfying.

In this cliffhanger from Casey Neistat, he simply asks us a question, “Was that good?” This calls upon us to recall all the awesome YouTube videos we have seen created by filmmakers that aren’t considered “prestigious.” A cliffhanger does not have to end with an epic reveal; it can wrap up with loose ends and allow the audience to tie it up themselves.

How to Deliver a Good Cliffhanger

Applying good cliffhangers to your YouTube videos is a balancing act. You want to draw your audience in, but you also need to have a payoff that is worth the wait.

Done well, a cliffhanger will leave your audience wanting more. Done poorly, a cliffhanger will leave your audience feeling to mislead and a little ripped off, hesitant to listen to more stories from you.

A good cliffhanger does not have to be life or death, but it does have to be the moment the story has been leading up to.

Before you start telling your story, consider the key details that are most impactful.

Once you have the points you want to hit, plan out the reveal. Weave the story together, but withhold the pivotal details until the cliffhanger. Thendeliver it on camera confidently .

Here are two ways you can present your cliffhanger for amplified effect:

1. Slow Down and Have Pauses

As your story intensifies, bring the pace down — or stop completely. The silence becomes the cliffhanger. It can last a second or more, depending on how confident you are in the tension you have built.

Your next words or shots can be the reveal. If you are skilled enough, you can lead into another story one that connects to the previous. If you are trying this, make sure that in the end, the payoff has double the impact. The reveal needs to be twice as powerful if you are going to take the audience on another journey before wrapping up and answering the long-awaited questions.

2. Use Repetition

Whether you want to misdirect your audience or hammer home a point, using repetition throughout your story will help you build the tension you need to establish the cliffhanger.

In this example, we see YouTuber, A little bit of Monika uses both pace and repetition in her storytelling method.

The video starts off at a speedy pace, all the way until the last scene where the confrontation occurs. That’s her slowing down the story so that we are all anticipating the reveal. Is she or is she not actor, Saoirse Ronan?

Through this short video, the repetition of the name is used to show her confidence that her roommate is not who she said it is. The more affirming she becomes, the more likely we as the viewers are going to side with her. This is a simple example of misdirection.

The more you say something or show something, the more important it becomes for the audience — at least, you want it to appear important.

2. Use Empathy

A storyteller must be empathetic.

If your audience cannot empathize with what you are communicating, it would not have the intended effect. Storytelling is all about taking people out of their bodies and putting them in someone else’s.

If you are telling a story about the time your car broke down, you want people to empathize and feel the helplessness of being stuck on a highway, waving cars down to help.

Empathy makes people feel more human. Telling a story people can relate to, even if it didn’t happen to them, is a sign of a quality storyteller.

Don’t Use Too Many Facts and Figures

If you began your story by saying that 1/1,000 cars on the highway break down, that doesn’t evoke any major emotion. There is nothing human about it.

It’s an interesting stat, sure, but the audience is unsure how they should respond. Is that a lot? Is that because of the highway? Is it because of the drivers? Nobody knows… it’s numbered with no context.

However, if you told the story about that time you had to abandon your vehicle and walk down the highway in order to make your important appointment. Suddenly, the audience can empathize with the tribulations you have gone through.

Facts and figures are useful in reports, but not as much in compelling stories.

Evoke the Senses

If I talk about hot melting chocolate, standing in the rain, or the smell of your grandmother’s bedroom, your senses are activated. From all your life experiences, your brain is able to form familiar sensations without any physical changes to your surrounding. That’s the power of storytelling.

Good storytellers use these sensory details and descriptive imagery to spice up a story. This draws the audience in and gives them a more immersive experience when listening to your stories.

Ask yourself these questions:

- What does it smell like?

- What can you hear?

- What do you see?

- What can you physically feel?

This example from YouTuber, Kiril Dobrev perfectly exemplifies what sensory igniting storytelling can do. He illustrates the sensation of being in Hong Kong, not simply through visuals but physical motions and audio effects.

Use Metaphors

As a YouTube storyteller, sometimes you will have to communicate complex ideas. When that happens, use a metaphor to increase the impact.

If you are telling a story about how much you dislike your teacher, you can list off all the ways she is unlikable or you can sum it up with a line like this: “My teacher makes the school a prison.”

That is a metaphor comparing school to prison. Most people haven’t been to prison, but understand what the metaphor is insinuating. School is not a fun place to be because of that teacher.

By connecting two different things, you allow the audience to paint the image in their mind quickly. It doesn’t take a lot of words to create a memorable metaphor. I encourage you to use metaphors anytime you need to address something complicated.

3. Take the Audience on a Meaningful Journey

Perhaps the most important element of a good story is that the journey is meaningful.

- Is it educational?

- Is it entertaining?

- Is it motivational or inspiring?

Knowing how you want to leave your audience feeling is foresight that will improve your YouTube storytelling abilities. Before you start telling your tale, ask: How do I want to change my audience?

YouTuber, Jamie Windsor tells a few stories connected to creativity and plagiarism. Anyone who has ever created anything can relate to his story and thus his audience can empathize.

It is also clear as a viewer that at the end of this 15-minute long video, his audience will have gone on a meaningful journey with him.

His story is a cautionary tale. He wants to educate us so that we can avoid making the same mistakes he did. He used his real-life experience to teach us and that makes it a meaningful video to watch. That was a good story.

Are there any YouTubers that you consider to be fantastic storytellers? Please share it in the comments box below.

Select a Versatile Video Editing Software to Stand Up from Numerous YouTubers

Users worldwide highly recommend Filmora because it comes loaded with various features, which helps to discover the editing skills, add an image to the imagination, and empower creativity.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

In the distracting world, we live in, you need to be a good storyteller to grow your YouTube channel. Your audience is not going to stick around to watch your whole video if your content isn’t enticing or relatable. If you want to get people to watch all your videos, you need to get them emotionally invested with your stories.

Here are 3 methods for creating an awesome story:

• Method 1: CREATE SUSPENSE
• Method 2: USE EMPATHY
• Method 3: TAKE THE AUDIENCE ON A MEANINGFUL JOURNEY

1. Create Suspense

The hero has an objective, but the plan might fail.

The likelihood of something going wrong is what makes a story suspenseful. When you tell a suspenseful story, your audience will have a heightened focus and a strong motivation to continue listening. They want to know if the hero succeeds. Keep the audience waiting and expecting. Don’t give away the ending right away.

What Does a Suspenseful Story Sound Like?

When we talk about a story that is dragging on, it is because there is no suspense. There is nothing at stake, there are no obstacles, there is no problem and, with no problem, there is no promise of resolution.

Here are a few examples you can use to pump more suspense into your story:

- Address a fear (example: being alone for the prom)

- An objective (example: asking the crush out to the dance)

- Consequences of failing (example: being embarrassed in front of the whole school)

- Limited time (example: prom is next week)

- Obstacles (example: the crush has an aggressive ex.)

You can feel your heart rate speeding up simply thinking about the character’s story in the example. Does it have a happy ending or not? We want to know!

Raise Questions After Questions

A good storyteller knows that as soon as they answer a question for their audience, they need to present another one. The audience will always need to have a puzzle in their mind, one that needs to be solved. That is what will keep their interest.

For example: If the hero ends up going to the prom with his crush, the next big question can be: Will they kiss at the last dance?

This continues building on the tension and increasing the stakes evermore.

Check out the suspenseful story from YouTuber, MissRemiAshten . The way she tells the story, we discover more and about her psycho neighbor and the incident gradually. A little bit of information about the neighbor is revealed at a time… not all at once.

Include a Cliffhanger

We’ve all had those moments at the end of an intense television show where we are shouting at the screen because it suddenly cut to black as the main characters were left in a precarious position. That emotional outburst is brought to us by a good cliffhanger, and a good cliffhanger can assure us that the audience will return for more.

But there needs to be more! A cliffhanger is a promise to the viewer that eventually they will be rewarded for their patience and it will be satisfying.

In this cliffhanger from Casey Neistat, he simply asks us a question, “Was that good?” This calls upon us to recall all the awesome YouTube videos we have seen created by filmmakers that aren’t considered “prestigious.” A cliffhanger does not have to end with an epic reveal; it can wrap up with loose ends and allow the audience to tie it up themselves.

How to Deliver a Good Cliffhanger

Applying good cliffhangers to your YouTube videos is a balancing act. You want to draw your audience in, but you also need to have a payoff that is worth the wait.

Done well, a cliffhanger will leave your audience wanting more. Done poorly, a cliffhanger will leave your audience feeling to mislead and a little ripped off, hesitant to listen to more stories from you.

A good cliffhanger does not have to be life or death, but it does have to be the moment the story has been leading up to.

Before you start telling your story, consider the key details that are most impactful.

Once you have the points you want to hit, plan out the reveal. Weave the story together, but withhold the pivotal details until the cliffhanger. Thendeliver it on camera confidently .

Here are two ways you can present your cliffhanger for amplified effect:

1. Slow Down and Have Pauses

As your story intensifies, bring the pace down — or stop completely. The silence becomes the cliffhanger. It can last a second or more, depending on how confident you are in the tension you have built.

Your next words or shots can be the reveal. If you are skilled enough, you can lead into another story one that connects to the previous. If you are trying this, make sure that in the end, the payoff has double the impact. The reveal needs to be twice as powerful if you are going to take the audience on another journey before wrapping up and answering the long-awaited questions.

2. Use Repetition

Whether you want to misdirect your audience or hammer home a point, using repetition throughout your story will help you build the tension you need to establish the cliffhanger.

In this example, we see YouTuber, A little bit of Monika uses both pace and repetition in her storytelling method.

The video starts off at a speedy pace, all the way until the last scene where the confrontation occurs. That’s her slowing down the story so that we are all anticipating the reveal. Is she or is she not actor, Saoirse Ronan?

Through this short video, the repetition of the name is used to show her confidence that her roommate is not who she said it is. The more affirming she becomes, the more likely we as the viewers are going to side with her. This is a simple example of misdirection.

The more you say something or show something, the more important it becomes for the audience — at least, you want it to appear important.

2. Use Empathy

A storyteller must be empathetic.

If your audience cannot empathize with what you are communicating, it would not have the intended effect. Storytelling is all about taking people out of their bodies and putting them in someone else’s.

If you are telling a story about the time your car broke down, you want people to empathize and feel the helplessness of being stuck on a highway, waving cars down to help.

Empathy makes people feel more human. Telling a story people can relate to, even if it didn’t happen to them, is a sign of a quality storyteller.

Don’t Use Too Many Facts and Figures

If you began your story by saying that 1/1,000 cars on the highway break down, that doesn’t evoke any major emotion. There is nothing human about it.

It’s an interesting stat, sure, but the audience is unsure how they should respond. Is that a lot? Is that because of the highway? Is it because of the drivers? Nobody knows… it’s numbered with no context.

However, if you told the story about that time you had to abandon your vehicle and walk down the highway in order to make your important appointment. Suddenly, the audience can empathize with the tribulations you have gone through.

Facts and figures are useful in reports, but not as much in compelling stories.

Evoke the Senses

If I talk about hot melting chocolate, standing in the rain, or the smell of your grandmother’s bedroom, your senses are activated. From all your life experiences, your brain is able to form familiar sensations without any physical changes to your surrounding. That’s the power of storytelling.

Good storytellers use these sensory details and descriptive imagery to spice up a story. This draws the audience in and gives them a more immersive experience when listening to your stories.

Ask yourself these questions:

- What does it smell like?

- What can you hear?

- What do you see?

- What can you physically feel?

This example from YouTuber, Kiril Dobrev perfectly exemplifies what sensory igniting storytelling can do. He illustrates the sensation of being in Hong Kong, not simply through visuals but physical motions and audio effects.

Use Metaphors

As a YouTube storyteller, sometimes you will have to communicate complex ideas. When that happens, use a metaphor to increase the impact.

If you are telling a story about how much you dislike your teacher, you can list off all the ways she is unlikable or you can sum it up with a line like this: “My teacher makes the school a prison.”

That is a metaphor comparing school to prison. Most people haven’t been to prison, but understand what the metaphor is insinuating. School is not a fun place to be because of that teacher.

By connecting two different things, you allow the audience to paint the image in their mind quickly. It doesn’t take a lot of words to create a memorable metaphor. I encourage you to use metaphors anytime you need to address something complicated.

3. Take the Audience on a Meaningful Journey

Perhaps the most important element of a good story is that the journey is meaningful.

- Is it educational?

- Is it entertaining?

- Is it motivational or inspiring?

Knowing how you want to leave your audience feeling is foresight that will improve your YouTube storytelling abilities. Before you start telling your tale, ask: How do I want to change my audience?

YouTuber, Jamie Windsor tells a few stories connected to creativity and plagiarism. Anyone who has ever created anything can relate to his story and thus his audience can empathize.

It is also clear as a viewer that at the end of this 15-minute long video, his audience will have gone on a meaningful journey with him.

His story is a cautionary tale. He wants to educate us so that we can avoid making the same mistakes he did. He used his real-life experience to teach us and that makes it a meaningful video to watch. That was a good story.

Are there any YouTubers that you consider to be fantastic storytellers? Please share it in the comments box below.

Select a Versatile Video Editing Software to Stand Up from Numerous YouTubers

Users worldwide highly recommend Filmora because it comes loaded with various features, which helps to discover the editing skills, add an image to the imagination, and empower creativity.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

In the distracting world, we live in, you need to be a good storyteller to grow your YouTube channel. Your audience is not going to stick around to watch your whole video if your content isn’t enticing or relatable. If you want to get people to watch all your videos, you need to get them emotionally invested with your stories.

Here are 3 methods for creating an awesome story:

• Method 1: CREATE SUSPENSE
• Method 2: USE EMPATHY
• Method 3: TAKE THE AUDIENCE ON A MEANINGFUL JOURNEY

1. Create Suspense

The hero has an objective, but the plan might fail.

The likelihood of something going wrong is what makes a story suspenseful. When you tell a suspenseful story, your audience will have a heightened focus and a strong motivation to continue listening. They want to know if the hero succeeds. Keep the audience waiting and expecting. Don’t give away the ending right away.

What Does a Suspenseful Story Sound Like?

When we talk about a story that is dragging on, it is because there is no suspense. There is nothing at stake, there are no obstacles, there is no problem and, with no problem, there is no promise of resolution.

Here are a few examples you can use to pump more suspense into your story:

- Address a fear (example: being alone for the prom)

- An objective (example: asking the crush out to the dance)

- Consequences of failing (example: being embarrassed in front of the whole school)

- Limited time (example: prom is next week)

- Obstacles (example: the crush has an aggressive ex.)

You can feel your heart rate speeding up simply thinking about the character’s story in the example. Does it have a happy ending or not? We want to know!

Raise Questions After Questions

A good storyteller knows that as soon as they answer a question for their audience, they need to present another one. The audience will always need to have a puzzle in their mind, one that needs to be solved. That is what will keep their interest.

For example: If the hero ends up going to the prom with his crush, the next big question can be: Will they kiss at the last dance?

This continues building on the tension and increasing the stakes evermore.

Check out the suspenseful story from YouTuber, MissRemiAshten . The way she tells the story, we discover more and about her psycho neighbor and the incident gradually. A little bit of information about the neighbor is revealed at a time… not all at once.

Include a Cliffhanger

We’ve all had those moments at the end of an intense television show where we are shouting at the screen because it suddenly cut to black as the main characters were left in a precarious position. That emotional outburst is brought to us by a good cliffhanger, and a good cliffhanger can assure us that the audience will return for more.

But there needs to be more! A cliffhanger is a promise to the viewer that eventually they will be rewarded for their patience and it will be satisfying.

In this cliffhanger from Casey Neistat, he simply asks us a question, “Was that good?” This calls upon us to recall all the awesome YouTube videos we have seen created by filmmakers that aren’t considered “prestigious.” A cliffhanger does not have to end with an epic reveal; it can wrap up with loose ends and allow the audience to tie it up themselves.

How to Deliver a Good Cliffhanger

Applying good cliffhangers to your YouTube videos is a balancing act. You want to draw your audience in, but you also need to have a payoff that is worth the wait.

Done well, a cliffhanger will leave your audience wanting more. Done poorly, a cliffhanger will leave your audience feeling to mislead and a little ripped off, hesitant to listen to more stories from you.

A good cliffhanger does not have to be life or death, but it does have to be the moment the story has been leading up to.

Before you start telling your story, consider the key details that are most impactful.

Once you have the points you want to hit, plan out the reveal. Weave the story together, but withhold the pivotal details until the cliffhanger. Thendeliver it on camera confidently .

Here are two ways you can present your cliffhanger for amplified effect:

1. Slow Down and Have Pauses

As your story intensifies, bring the pace down — or stop completely. The silence becomes the cliffhanger. It can last a second or more, depending on how confident you are in the tension you have built.

Your next words or shots can be the reveal. If you are skilled enough, you can lead into another story one that connects to the previous. If you are trying this, make sure that in the end, the payoff has double the impact. The reveal needs to be twice as powerful if you are going to take the audience on another journey before wrapping up and answering the long-awaited questions.

2. Use Repetition

Whether you want to misdirect your audience or hammer home a point, using repetition throughout your story will help you build the tension you need to establish the cliffhanger.

In this example, we see YouTuber, A little bit of Monika uses both pace and repetition in her storytelling method.

The video starts off at a speedy pace, all the way until the last scene where the confrontation occurs. That’s her slowing down the story so that we are all anticipating the reveal. Is she or is she not actor, Saoirse Ronan?

Through this short video, the repetition of the name is used to show her confidence that her roommate is not who she said it is. The more affirming she becomes, the more likely we as the viewers are going to side with her. This is a simple example of misdirection.

The more you say something or show something, the more important it becomes for the audience — at least, you want it to appear important.

2. Use Empathy

A storyteller must be empathetic.

If your audience cannot empathize with what you are communicating, it would not have the intended effect. Storytelling is all about taking people out of their bodies and putting them in someone else’s.

If you are telling a story about the time your car broke down, you want people to empathize and feel the helplessness of being stuck on a highway, waving cars down to help.

Empathy makes people feel more human. Telling a story people can relate to, even if it didn’t happen to them, is a sign of a quality storyteller.

Don’t Use Too Many Facts and Figures

If you began your story by saying that 1/1,000 cars on the highway break down, that doesn’t evoke any major emotion. There is nothing human about it.

It’s an interesting stat, sure, but the audience is unsure how they should respond. Is that a lot? Is that because of the highway? Is it because of the drivers? Nobody knows… it’s numbered with no context.

However, if you told the story about that time you had to abandon your vehicle and walk down the highway in order to make your important appointment. Suddenly, the audience can empathize with the tribulations you have gone through.

Facts and figures are useful in reports, but not as much in compelling stories.

Evoke the Senses

If I talk about hot melting chocolate, standing in the rain, or the smell of your grandmother’s bedroom, your senses are activated. From all your life experiences, your brain is able to form familiar sensations without any physical changes to your surrounding. That’s the power of storytelling.

Good storytellers use these sensory details and descriptive imagery to spice up a story. This draws the audience in and gives them a more immersive experience when listening to your stories.

Ask yourself these questions:

- What does it smell like?

- What can you hear?

- What do you see?

- What can you physically feel?

This example from YouTuber, Kiril Dobrev perfectly exemplifies what sensory igniting storytelling can do. He illustrates the sensation of being in Hong Kong, not simply through visuals but physical motions and audio effects.

Use Metaphors

As a YouTube storyteller, sometimes you will have to communicate complex ideas. When that happens, use a metaphor to increase the impact.

If you are telling a story about how much you dislike your teacher, you can list off all the ways she is unlikable or you can sum it up with a line like this: “My teacher makes the school a prison.”

That is a metaphor comparing school to prison. Most people haven’t been to prison, but understand what the metaphor is insinuating. School is not a fun place to be because of that teacher.

By connecting two different things, you allow the audience to paint the image in their mind quickly. It doesn’t take a lot of words to create a memorable metaphor. I encourage you to use metaphors anytime you need to address something complicated.

3. Take the Audience on a Meaningful Journey

Perhaps the most important element of a good story is that the journey is meaningful.

- Is it educational?

- Is it entertaining?

- Is it motivational or inspiring?

Knowing how you want to leave your audience feeling is foresight that will improve your YouTube storytelling abilities. Before you start telling your tale, ask: How do I want to change my audience?

YouTuber, Jamie Windsor tells a few stories connected to creativity and plagiarism. Anyone who has ever created anything can relate to his story and thus his audience can empathize.

It is also clear as a viewer that at the end of this 15-minute long video, his audience will have gone on a meaningful journey with him.

His story is a cautionary tale. He wants to educate us so that we can avoid making the same mistakes he did. He used his real-life experience to teach us and that makes it a meaningful video to watch. That was a good story.

Are there any YouTubers that you consider to be fantastic storytellers? Please share it in the comments box below.

Select a Versatile Video Editing Software to Stand Up from Numerous YouTubers

Users worldwide highly recommend Filmora because it comes loaded with various features, which helps to discover the editing skills, add an image to the imagination, and empower creativity.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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Dive Deep Into Duality: Mastering Multi-Video Watching on YouTube

Facebook Video Maker - Wondershare Filmora

Provide abundant video effects - A creative video editor

Powerful color correction and grading

Detailed tutorials provided by the official channel

Try It Free Try It Free

There are some unfortunate times when two of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators have the same timing, or you want to watch multiple videos on a single screen at the same time for comparison or any other reason.

It is a hassle to continuously switch between tabs or to drag and minimize windows continuously just to watch a few glimpses of each stream. Thanks to technological advances, there are now third-party services that allow you to watch multiple YouTube videos at one time on a single screen.

Below are some of the services and websites that save you from this hassle.

In this article

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

Part 2: ViewSync

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

YouTube Multistream is a free service that quite effectively simplifies things for you and allows you to watch live streams or play up to 4 videos at the same time. Below are the steps you need to follow in order to play videos simultaneously.

The only caveats are that you cannot sync audio and it does not allow you to play more than 4 videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open YouTube Multistream

Open the website using the link:

YouTube Multistream

You will see 4 boxes where you can input the links of your desired videos you wish to watch.

Step 2: Input Links

After opening the website, copy and paste the links of your desired videos that you wish to watch at the same time.

Step 3: Play What You Like

After copying and pasting the links of the YouTube videos, click on ‘Confirm’. It will redirect you to another page with all 4 videos on one screen and then you can decide which one to play or if you want to stream all 4 at the same time, that is also possible.

It is up to you if you want to stream 2, 3, or 4 videos at the same time and you can play or pause them at any time. It is also helpful if you want to overlap audio of different instruments just for fun or you can stream your favorite games along with any e-sport competition and add in some music to make the environment lively.

Part 2: ViewSync

ViewSync is a free multiplayer for YouTube videos. It was designed to watch Mindcrack UHC videos but it can also be used to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time. You can add links and watch as many YouTube videos at the same time as you wish.

Another amazing feature of ViewSync is that you can sync audio if the videos share the same voice audio or you can even create pleasing mashups by syncing different audio cues from each video. Below are the steps you need to follow to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open ViewSync

Open ViewSync using the link:

Open ViewSync

Step 2: Input Links

Click the + icon and paste the link to the YouTube video you want to watch. Repeat the process and add as many links to YouTube videos as you desire to watch.

Step 3: Adjust Audio Cues

After adding the links, if the videos share the same audio voice, you can adjust the audio cues as in where each video will start from so the audio is in sync. You can play and check the audio or just manually put the exact time in the dialogue box under the video.

Step 4: Test Audio

After adjusting the audio cues, click Test Audio and it will play the audio for you so you can make sure it is perfectly in sync.

Step 5: Generate Link

Click on the ViewSync! button and it will generate a final ViewSync link for you where you can watch the finalized and synced videos. Copy and paste the link in your browser.

Step 6: Buffer the videos

Once you have opened the link generated by ViewSync, click on each video once to start the buffering process.

After buffering is complete, the master controller will start to show from which you can play and pause all the videos at the same time or even resync them.

Step 7: All Set

Now you are all set to play all your desired YouTube videos at the same time. You can also tweak the audio and video quality settings and can choose which video should play audio and all other settings will be available once you click the gear icon on the master controller.

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

WonderShare Filmora is a great tool for editing your videos and content that you can eventually upload on YouTube or other platforms and share with the world. If you are a content creator or gamer yourself and frequently collaborate with other creators, you can use WonderShare Filmora to eliminate the need for a separate multiplayer.

WonderShare Filmora is very powerful and simple to use. You can easily add multiple video frames and combine them into one e.g. join videos from your fellow creators and then sync the audio in-app using the easy-to-use tools and features in this user-friendly application.

This will eliminate the need for a Multi Stream service.

Conclusion

Now you don’t have to worry about missing one of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators or gamers just because the timing overlaps. You can now watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time with great ease and it will not only save your time but immensely relieve the pressure of missing a live game or stream.

You can now sync audio and create a realistic moment as if you are sitting among the streamers and watching them play in real-time that too on a single screen!

Try It Free Try It Free

Try It Free Try It Free

There are some unfortunate times when two of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators have the same timing, or you want to watch multiple videos on a single screen at the same time for comparison or any other reason.

It is a hassle to continuously switch between tabs or to drag and minimize windows continuously just to watch a few glimpses of each stream. Thanks to technological advances, there are now third-party services that allow you to watch multiple YouTube videos at one time on a single screen.

Below are some of the services and websites that save you from this hassle.

In this article

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

Part 2: ViewSync

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

YouTube Multistream is a free service that quite effectively simplifies things for you and allows you to watch live streams or play up to 4 videos at the same time. Below are the steps you need to follow in order to play videos simultaneously.

The only caveats are that you cannot sync audio and it does not allow you to play more than 4 videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open YouTube Multistream

Open the website using the link:

YouTube Multistream

You will see 4 boxes where you can input the links of your desired videos you wish to watch.

Step 2: Input Links

After opening the website, copy and paste the links of your desired videos that you wish to watch at the same time.

Step 3: Play What You Like

After copying and pasting the links of the YouTube videos, click on ‘Confirm’. It will redirect you to another page with all 4 videos on one screen and then you can decide which one to play or if you want to stream all 4 at the same time, that is also possible.

It is up to you if you want to stream 2, 3, or 4 videos at the same time and you can play or pause them at any time. It is also helpful if you want to overlap audio of different instruments just for fun or you can stream your favorite games along with any e-sport competition and add in some music to make the environment lively.

Part 2: ViewSync

ViewSync is a free multiplayer for YouTube videos. It was designed to watch Mindcrack UHC videos but it can also be used to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time. You can add links and watch as many YouTube videos at the same time as you wish.

Another amazing feature of ViewSync is that you can sync audio if the videos share the same voice audio or you can even create pleasing mashups by syncing different audio cues from each video. Below are the steps you need to follow to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open ViewSync

Open ViewSync using the link:

Open ViewSync

Step 2: Input Links

Click the + icon and paste the link to the YouTube video you want to watch. Repeat the process and add as many links to YouTube videos as you desire to watch.

Step 3: Adjust Audio Cues

After adding the links, if the videos share the same audio voice, you can adjust the audio cues as in where each video will start from so the audio is in sync. You can play and check the audio or just manually put the exact time in the dialogue box under the video.

Step 4: Test Audio

After adjusting the audio cues, click Test Audio and it will play the audio for you so you can make sure it is perfectly in sync.

Step 5: Generate Link

Click on the ViewSync! button and it will generate a final ViewSync link for you where you can watch the finalized and synced videos. Copy and paste the link in your browser.

Step 6: Buffer the videos

Once you have opened the link generated by ViewSync, click on each video once to start the buffering process.

After buffering is complete, the master controller will start to show from which you can play and pause all the videos at the same time or even resync them.

Step 7: All Set

Now you are all set to play all your desired YouTube videos at the same time. You can also tweak the audio and video quality settings and can choose which video should play audio and all other settings will be available once you click the gear icon on the master controller.

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

WonderShare Filmora is a great tool for editing your videos and content that you can eventually upload on YouTube or other platforms and share with the world. If you are a content creator or gamer yourself and frequently collaborate with other creators, you can use WonderShare Filmora to eliminate the need for a separate multiplayer.

WonderShare Filmora is very powerful and simple to use. You can easily add multiple video frames and combine them into one e.g. join videos from your fellow creators and then sync the audio in-app using the easy-to-use tools and features in this user-friendly application.

This will eliminate the need for a Multi Stream service.

Conclusion

Now you don’t have to worry about missing one of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators or gamers just because the timing overlaps. You can now watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time with great ease and it will not only save your time but immensely relieve the pressure of missing a live game or stream.

You can now sync audio and create a realistic moment as if you are sitting among the streamers and watching them play in real-time that too on a single screen!

Try It Free Try It Free

Try It Free Try It Free

There are some unfortunate times when two of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators have the same timing, or you want to watch multiple videos on a single screen at the same time for comparison or any other reason.

It is a hassle to continuously switch between tabs or to drag and minimize windows continuously just to watch a few glimpses of each stream. Thanks to technological advances, there are now third-party services that allow you to watch multiple YouTube videos at one time on a single screen.

Below are some of the services and websites that save you from this hassle.

In this article

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

Part 2: ViewSync

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

YouTube Multistream is a free service that quite effectively simplifies things for you and allows you to watch live streams or play up to 4 videos at the same time. Below are the steps you need to follow in order to play videos simultaneously.

The only caveats are that you cannot sync audio and it does not allow you to play more than 4 videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open YouTube Multistream

Open the website using the link:

YouTube Multistream

You will see 4 boxes where you can input the links of your desired videos you wish to watch.

Step 2: Input Links

After opening the website, copy and paste the links of your desired videos that you wish to watch at the same time.

Step 3: Play What You Like

After copying and pasting the links of the YouTube videos, click on ‘Confirm’. It will redirect you to another page with all 4 videos on one screen and then you can decide which one to play or if you want to stream all 4 at the same time, that is also possible.

It is up to you if you want to stream 2, 3, or 4 videos at the same time and you can play or pause them at any time. It is also helpful if you want to overlap audio of different instruments just for fun or you can stream your favorite games along with any e-sport competition and add in some music to make the environment lively.

Part 2: ViewSync

ViewSync is a free multiplayer for YouTube videos. It was designed to watch Mindcrack UHC videos but it can also be used to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time. You can add links and watch as many YouTube videos at the same time as you wish.

Another amazing feature of ViewSync is that you can sync audio if the videos share the same voice audio or you can even create pleasing mashups by syncing different audio cues from each video. Below are the steps you need to follow to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open ViewSync

Open ViewSync using the link:

Open ViewSync

Step 2: Input Links

Click the + icon and paste the link to the YouTube video you want to watch. Repeat the process and add as many links to YouTube videos as you desire to watch.

Step 3: Adjust Audio Cues

After adding the links, if the videos share the same audio voice, you can adjust the audio cues as in where each video will start from so the audio is in sync. You can play and check the audio or just manually put the exact time in the dialogue box under the video.

Step 4: Test Audio

After adjusting the audio cues, click Test Audio and it will play the audio for you so you can make sure it is perfectly in sync.

Step 5: Generate Link

Click on the ViewSync! button and it will generate a final ViewSync link for you where you can watch the finalized and synced videos. Copy and paste the link in your browser.

Step 6: Buffer the videos

Once you have opened the link generated by ViewSync, click on each video once to start the buffering process.

After buffering is complete, the master controller will start to show from which you can play and pause all the videos at the same time or even resync them.

Step 7: All Set

Now you are all set to play all your desired YouTube videos at the same time. You can also tweak the audio and video quality settings and can choose which video should play audio and all other settings will be available once you click the gear icon on the master controller.

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

WonderShare Filmora is a great tool for editing your videos and content that you can eventually upload on YouTube or other platforms and share with the world. If you are a content creator or gamer yourself and frequently collaborate with other creators, you can use WonderShare Filmora to eliminate the need for a separate multiplayer.

WonderShare Filmora is very powerful and simple to use. You can easily add multiple video frames and combine them into one e.g. join videos from your fellow creators and then sync the audio in-app using the easy-to-use tools and features in this user-friendly application.

This will eliminate the need for a Multi Stream service.

Conclusion

Now you don’t have to worry about missing one of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators or gamers just because the timing overlaps. You can now watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time with great ease and it will not only save your time but immensely relieve the pressure of missing a live game or stream.

You can now sync audio and create a realistic moment as if you are sitting among the streamers and watching them play in real-time that too on a single screen!

Try It Free Try It Free

Try It Free Try It Free

There are some unfortunate times when two of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators have the same timing, or you want to watch multiple videos on a single screen at the same time for comparison or any other reason.

It is a hassle to continuously switch between tabs or to drag and minimize windows continuously just to watch a few glimpses of each stream. Thanks to technological advances, there are now third-party services that allow you to watch multiple YouTube videos at one time on a single screen.

Below are some of the services and websites that save you from this hassle.

In this article

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

Part 2: ViewSync

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

Part 1: YouTube Multistream

YouTube Multistream is a free service that quite effectively simplifies things for you and allows you to watch live streams or play up to 4 videos at the same time. Below are the steps you need to follow in order to play videos simultaneously.

The only caveats are that you cannot sync audio and it does not allow you to play more than 4 videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open YouTube Multistream

Open the website using the link:

YouTube Multistream

You will see 4 boxes where you can input the links of your desired videos you wish to watch.

Step 2: Input Links

After opening the website, copy and paste the links of your desired videos that you wish to watch at the same time.

Step 3: Play What You Like

After copying and pasting the links of the YouTube videos, click on ‘Confirm’. It will redirect you to another page with all 4 videos on one screen and then you can decide which one to play or if you want to stream all 4 at the same time, that is also possible.

It is up to you if you want to stream 2, 3, or 4 videos at the same time and you can play or pause them at any time. It is also helpful if you want to overlap audio of different instruments just for fun or you can stream your favorite games along with any e-sport competition and add in some music to make the environment lively.

Part 2: ViewSync

ViewSync is a free multiplayer for YouTube videos. It was designed to watch Mindcrack UHC videos but it can also be used to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time. You can add links and watch as many YouTube videos at the same time as you wish.

Another amazing feature of ViewSync is that you can sync audio if the videos share the same voice audio or you can even create pleasing mashups by syncing different audio cues from each video. Below are the steps you need to follow to watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time.

Step 1: Open ViewSync

Open ViewSync using the link:

Open ViewSync

Step 2: Input Links

Click the + icon and paste the link to the YouTube video you want to watch. Repeat the process and add as many links to YouTube videos as you desire to watch.

Step 3: Adjust Audio Cues

After adding the links, if the videos share the same audio voice, you can adjust the audio cues as in where each video will start from so the audio is in sync. You can play and check the audio or just manually put the exact time in the dialogue box under the video.

Step 4: Test Audio

After adjusting the audio cues, click Test Audio and it will play the audio for you so you can make sure it is perfectly in sync.

Step 5: Generate Link

Click on the ViewSync! button and it will generate a final ViewSync link for you where you can watch the finalized and synced videos. Copy and paste the link in your browser.

Step 6: Buffer the videos

Once you have opened the link generated by ViewSync, click on each video once to start the buffering process.

After buffering is complete, the master controller will start to show from which you can play and pause all the videos at the same time or even resync them.

Step 7: All Set

Now you are all set to play all your desired YouTube videos at the same time. You can also tweak the audio and video quality settings and can choose which video should play audio and all other settings will be available once you click the gear icon on the master controller.

Part 3: WonderShare Filmora

WonderShare Filmora is a great tool for editing your videos and content that you can eventually upload on YouTube or other platforms and share with the world. If you are a content creator or gamer yourself and frequently collaborate with other creators, you can use WonderShare Filmora to eliminate the need for a separate multiplayer.

WonderShare Filmora is very powerful and simple to use. You can easily add multiple video frames and combine them into one e.g. join videos from your fellow creators and then sync the audio in-app using the easy-to-use tools and features in this user-friendly application.

This will eliminate the need for a Multi Stream service.

Conclusion

Now you don’t have to worry about missing one of your favorite games or streams from your favorite content creators or gamers just because the timing overlaps. You can now watch multiple YouTube videos at the same time with great ease and it will not only save your time but immensely relieve the pressure of missing a live game or stream.

You can now sync audio and create a realistic moment as if you are sitting among the streamers and watching them play in real-time that too on a single screen!

Try It Free Try It Free

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