How to Tell a Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling from The Moth

4.6 | 639 ratings

Price: 15.75

Last update: 01-11-2025

About this item

2022 Porchlight Business Book Awards - Big Ideas and New Perspectives, Long-listed

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The definitive guide to telling an unforgettable story in any setting, drawing on twenty-five years of experience from the storytelling experts at The Moth

“From toasts to eulogies, from job interviews to social events, this book will help you with ideas, structure, delivery and more.”—CNN

LONGLISTED FOR THE PORCHLIGHT BUSINESS BOOK AWARD

Over the past twenty-five years, the directors of The Moth have worked with people from all walks of life—including astronauts, hairdressers, rock stars, a retired pickpocket, high school students, and Nobel Prize winners—to develop true personal stories that have moved and delighted live audiences and listeners of The Moth’s Peabody Award–winning radio hour and podcast. A leader in the modern storytelling movement, The Moth inspires thousands of people around the globe to share their stories each year.

Now, with How to Tell a Story, The Moth will help you learn how to uncover and craft your own unique stories, like Moth storytellers Mike Birbiglia, Rosanne Cash, Neil Gaiman, Elizabeth Gilbert, Padma Lakshmi, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Tig Notaro, Boots Riley, Betty Reid Soskin, John Turturro, and more.

Whether your goal is to make it to the Moth stage, deliver the perfect wedding toast, wow clients at a business dinner, give a moving eulogy, ace a job interview, be a hit at parties, change the world, or simply connect more deeply to those around you, stories are essential.

Sharing secrets of The Moth’s time-honed process and using examples from beloved storytellers, a team of Moth directors will show you how to:

mine your memories for your best stories
explore structures that will boost the impact of your story
deliver your stories with confidence
tailor your stories for any occasion

Filled with empowering, easy-to-follow tips for crafting stories that forge lasting bonds with friends, family, and colleagues alike, this book will help you connect authentically with the world around you and unleash the power of story in your life.

thezwomann

This book is so good, I bought it twice.

Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2023

First, I purchased it on Audible and listened. It's so engaging, and the examples feature live audience performances at Moth gatherings. You will definitely want to get a copy of the audio book. As I continued listening, I slowly realized that there were so many "how to" sections featuring tips on what to do and what not to do that I had to get my hands on a print edition...which I did. So, now I have two copies, and it's the best investment I've made in a while. The audio is so entertaining, engaging, and insightful; the written copy is the perfect writer's reference guide. Highly recommend.

Brian M. Berger

A delightful foray into storytelling

Reviewed in the United States on April 27, 2022

I will likely never have the courage to tell a story at The Moth, but that doesn't mean knowing how to tell a story with conviction, confidence, and efficiency is without merit. We all know someone who meanders, loses the plot, and sometimes frustrates all those in attendance, and this book could actually help even those who struggle carrying a normal conversation. This book acts as an entertaining primer into storytelling, but also acts as a guide on how to be a more effective conversationalist. The applications are relevant to anyone that wants to interact with other people in the best way possible. And yes, there are stories which are delightful. It's worth your time.

Amazon Customer

Good for community

Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2023

This book is a great way to self reflect and craft your stories. You can also help others craft theirs. Sharing in this way is what helps build stronger communities, which is something that we all could use right now.

Joshua vrem

Truly a great book for understanding storytelling

Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2022

If you want to learn how to tell a story better, whether it's for work, for fun, for a party, a wedding, etc, or you want to tell it at the moth, this book is a great resource that won't let you down!

daniel l.

I am a Story Teller Now

Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2024

This book inspired me to attend a Moth event. I also started writing my stories down in the hopes that I get up there one day and tell them. Even if I never speak at the Moth I will have lots of great stories to tell my friends and family! Loved this book!

Samantha Fox

Useful

Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2023

If you are looking to learn how to tell a story that is truthful, honest, and connects with people, this book is for you.

The book is well written with short sections and short chapters to appeal to those of us with shorter attention spans, but not so short that you lose the "distance" readers.

Every chapter is well crafted to feed into the next. There are summary pages that help you review and deepen the points of the chapter (they are not a good substitute for reading the book).

This would be a great book for professors to assign to their students in a speaking, writing, and/or composition course. *If you or someone you love is struggling to get out of academia, tell them: it gets better. Stop the violence against faculty!

Cpl Selky Sohail

“How to tell a very specific kind of story”

Reviewed in the United States on July 5, 2023

I’m rating at 3 stars because it’s incredibly niche. Laugh >>> Cry. If you want to tell a TRUE PERSONAL story that has personal meaning, make it honest, entertaining and funny, while also making it hit home, then this is your manual.

I was looking for broader structure on the craft of storytelling, but this feels like a workshop in preparation for going on stage and baring your heart to an audience about an experience that changed you. Every story gets punctuated with a clever one-liner that succinctly summarizes your growth as a person. “Maybe the real treasure was the friends we made along the way.”

Perhaps it’s my own upbringing and how storytelling was a tool to grow me, especially in my formative years, but stories, even true personal stories, do not necessarily need to round out to some personal growth moment in order to be powerful. The ones I reflect on often simply expose truth about the world around us; reality cleverly reveals its nature to us in a trillion tiny teaching moments, if you’re quick enough to catch it. And if you’re a good storyteller, you can give that shred of insight to others that they may accept as truth, and perhaps even do it in a way that explains you as person.

There is some useful stuff in here about the power of storytelling that is transferable to stuff outside of a Moth recital scenario. Mostly though I just resent that I cannot listen to a Moth story now without hearing the guidance from this book and perceiving the stories as a more involved fill-in-the-blank

Robert

A read for more than telling stories.

Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2022

Being the host of a podcast I have found this book to be helpful in many ways. I feel the podcast I enjoy listening too all know the key to telling a great story.

This book covers a completely different method of not just telling stories but also expressing our reaction to the stories we tell.

I was confused when I read the authors name but once you begin reading, it makes more sense.

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