• $24.99

    $24.99How to Tell a Great Story: The Essential Class

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  • $49.95

    $49.95Storytelling Bundle

    Buy our best-selling How to Tell a Great Story: The Essential Class and The Master Class Course - for one low price!
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What's Included ?

  • 12 videos packed with skill building knowledge

  • 12 quizzes to follow every lesson to test your knowledge

  • 1 digital workbook guiding you through the course

  • 2 hours of engaging lessons guiding you through your creative journey

Learn to write your own story or memoir that you can share with friends, family or even have published on a website or in a local or national publication in this two-hour exclusive class taught by the top editors at Guideposts.

This self-paced online course features master storytellers from Guideposts equipping you with the know how to make your story compelling and entertaining, following a formula that has worked at Guideposts for over 70 years. 

With over two hours of video lessons, this storytelling course will teach you all the essentials to writing a great story. 

To guide you in your creative writing journey, How to Tell a Great Story: The Essential Class features: 

  • Lessons taught by 5 of Guideposts’ top editors giving you their best advice, tips and tricks
  • 12 engaging video modules teaching you the skills you need to take your writing to the next level
  • Digital Workbook with a summary of main points from each module
  • Exercises within each lesson to apply your knowledge
  • Unlimited lifetime access to the course and its materials
  • Detailed Instructions on how to submit your story to a publisher for publication
  • Earn a Certificate of Completion when you finish the course.

We promise you will love this course. But if you are not satisfied, we offer a 30 Day Money-Back Guarantee.


Watch a Free Preview


What's inside this course...

  • 1
    Workbook
    • Workbook Download (42 pages)
    • Exclusive Access to Our 'Storytelling' Facebook group - a forum for writers
  • 2
    Chapter 1: What is a Story?
    • Our Master Storytellers will share how to engage your reader and you’ll learn about the unities of time, character and voice. (8:05)
    • Quiz 1
  • 3
    Chapter 2: Getting Started
    • The best way to begin writing is to just start writing. (7:58)
    • Quiz 2
  • 4
    Chapter 3: Where to Start
    • Learn about the “5 W’s” and how to share them with your reader as early in your story as possible. (12:02)
    • Quiz 3
  • 5
    Chapter 4: Finding Conflict in Your Story
    • In this lesson we will define conflict and share ways to add it to your story. (8:48)
    • Quiz 4
  • 6
    Chapter 5: Characterization
    • We will teach you how to make your characters interesting and compelling. (12:51)
    • Quiz 5
  • 7
    Chapter 6: Reliable Narrator
    • You will discover how to create a narrator who is believable and relatable. (15:02)
    • Quiz 6
  • 8
    Chapter 7: Moving it Along With Scenes
    • Here we teach how to make your story come alive with scenes. (12:47)
    • Quiz 7
  • 9
    Chapter 8: Moving it Along With Dialogue
    • In this lesson you will learn the dos and don’ts to moving a dialogue through the scenes of a story. (9:21)
    • Quiz 8
  • 10
    Chapter 9: Keeping Your Reader Engaged
    • Learn more about the two most important story elements - conflict and change - and how they work together. (8:10)
    • Quiz 9
  • 11
    Chapter 10: Where Should the Story End?
    • We will give you time-tested examples of how to end your story. (14:24)
    • Quiz 10
  • 12
    Chapter 11: Rewriting
    • In this lesson, you’ll learn tricks from the masters on how to make your story even more compelling. (10:31)
    • Quiz 11
  • 13
    Chapter 12: Technical Specifications
    • Finally, we will teach you how to polish your story for publication. (7:21)
    • Quiz 12

What students are saying about this course...

  • Excellent Course!

    Jarita Davis

    Thank you for sharing your expertise, guidance, and taking time to make this course available. It was an exceptional and enjoyable course to take and nurture...

    Read More

    Thank you for sharing your expertise, guidance, and taking time to make this course available. It was an exceptional and enjoyable course to take and nurture. I'm planning to review it again, and again... Again, many thanks for this wonderful course of "How To Tell A Story." I'm looking forward to give something to the universe. Jarita Davis

    Read Less
  • Comprehensive, Concise and Informative

    Robbie Pink

    I can’t say enough good things about the phenomenal writing course offered by Guideposts! 12 comprehensive, concise and informative modules feature Mast...

    Read More

    I can’t say enough good things about the phenomenal writing course offered by Guideposts! 12 comprehensive, concise and informative modules feature Master Storytellers from Guideposts who teach the segments. Their combined wisdom and knowledge are extraordinary and impressive. There are tests to take, as you complete each segment, to discover your understanding of the lesson. In addition, there is a 42-page downloadable workbook to take notes and further enhance your learning experience. I am amazed at how much is offered for so little (an average of just a little over $2 per module!)!! Thank you so very much for this fantastic opportunity!

    Read Less
  • Excellent Course for a Beginning Writer

    Claire Billings

    I have bought several writing books and attended some writing classes. This was a great class to cover the basics and provide tips from wonderful, experienc...

    Read More

    I have bought several writing books and attended some writing classes. This was a great class to cover the basics and provide tips from wonderful, experienced Guidepost editors. The handout that covers the key points and room for writing was very helpful. Each of the 12 modules is about 10 - 12 minutes, so it breaks down key topics such as "Where to Start Your Story," "What is the Story's Conflict?", "Characterization," "Reliable Narrator" "Moving it Along with Scenes," "Moving it Along with Dialog," and "Where to End Your Story" into interesting, manageable sizes. They gave tips that I had not seen in my books and to help prevent you from making common mistakes. A very worthwhile investment for yourself!

    Read Less
  • A great course for writers

    Becky Villareal

    This is a really great course for writers of any experience level. Even though I am a published author, I found the expertise of these speakers quite helpful...

    Read More

    This is a really great course for writers of any experience level. Even though I am a published author, I found the expertise of these speakers quite helpful. I just wish I had seen it before I went through trial and error. I would highly recommend this course for new writers before they begin their journey into the world of publication. This will give you great insight. Also, it is one of the few courses I found to be cost effective for a writer's budget and well worth every penny!

    Read Less

About the Instructors, aka the Masters of Storytelling:

Edward Grinnan is Editor-in-Chief of Guideposts magazine and Vice President and Editorial Director of Guideposts publications, which include the magazines All CreaturesMysterious WaysAngels on Earth, and PLUS. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has an MFA in playwriting from the Yale School of Drama. He is the author of the books The Promise of Hope: How True Stories of Hope and Inspiration Saved My Life, and Always By My Side: Life Lessons from Millie and All the Dogs I’ve Loved.

Rick Hamlin is executive editor of Guideposts magazine. He has published three novels and has written several books on prayer, most recently Ten Prayers You Can’t Live Without and Pray for Me. He and his wife, Carol, live in New York City and are the parents of two grown boys.

Amy Wong is executive editor of the magazines Guideposts and All Creatures. She wishes she could write as fast as she talks.

Colleen Hughes is Editor-in-Chief of Angels on Earth magazine and Senior Contributing Editor for Guideposts annual Joys of Christmas publication.

 Jim Hinch is a senior editor at Guideposts magazine. He is a longtime contributor to Daily Guidepostsand he and wife, Kate, live in New York City with their two children, Frances and Benjamin.

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