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Learn digital storytelling

What is digital storytelling

Digital storytelling combines the longstanding art of sharing knowledge, wisdom and values, with the use of digital technologies. The resulting narratives include blogs, vlogs, web-based stories, hypertexts, podcasts, interactive movies and TV shows, and computer games, among others.

A digital story can be broadly defined as a ‘multimodal’ digital presentation, which combines a variety of elements within a narrative structure – a story. Modes of storytelling can include:

linguistic (written or spoken)
visual (still and moving images)
auditory (sound and music)
gestural (body language and facial expressions) and spatial (the space we inhabit).

The combination of some or all of these elements may be used in digital storytelling using any form of digital media.

Tips for telling stories digitally View

1. Focus on the ‘story’ before the ‘digital’

First, you need to develop the narrative you want to use to tell the story. So, your first step should be to plan the content and basic structure of your story.

Once you know what story you are telling, you can make informed choices about the digital media and specific tools that you will use to communicate your story.

2. Select media and tools by matching function to needs

Digital media are how you tell your story (e.g., videos, podcasts, posters, blogs, articles).

Digital tools are what you use to craft your story (e.g., video/audio/image editing software, online blogging platforms, desktop publishing software).

Every type of media functions differently in the way that it communicates, and every tool functions differently in what and how you can create. First, select your media, then consider the variety of tools. When choosing between available options, think about the functions and modes that will meet the needs you have as a storyteller as well as the needs of your audience.

3. Upskill as needed

To tell the digital story you want, as creatively as you desire, you may wish to upskill in certain areas.

A particular advantage of digital skills development is the wealth of online resources you can access to learn how to use specific tools.

LinkedIn Learning is an excellent source of online self-paced courses for a wide variety of skills. To access it for free through Monash University and see what is available, log in using your Monash email address, then search for the name of the program/platform that you are interested in using.
YouTube is a treasure trove of online demonstrations and walk-throughs for many digital tools. It is often easy to find short video demonstrations of specific functions and skills. Search for the name of the tool, as well as what you are trying to do with the tool. For example, searching for ‘Google sites navigation bar’ will return results of videos that show you how to create and customise a navigation bar when making a webpage in Google sites.
Official support websites by the software publishers of a given tool typically include step-by-step instructions of various functions. Even in the case of a computer program that has inbuilt ‘help’ documentation it is often worth visiting their website as well, because websites sometimes include videos and more in-depth instructions.

Types of digital storytelling

As with any other form of communication, digital stories are best when we take care to consciously construct a narrative, with a focus on:

what message we mean to convey and
for what purpose we are communicating that message.

In addition, deciding the type of story that you are developing will help you craft a more effective and meaningful narrative.

In broad terms, digital stories can be categorised into four types: personal narratives, informative/instructional stories, historical stories, and fictional stories.

View the tabs below to explore the characteristics of these four types of digital stories.

Personal
Informative
Historical
Fictional

Personal digital narratives can revolve around significant life events (your own or someone else’s). They can be emotionally powerful, and personally meaningful. These stories are typically narrated in your own voice. For example, they may be written in the first person (and use first person pronouns ‘I, my’), and may tell the story of specific personal experiences.

Personal stories do not necessarily need to be spoken, but they should represent who you are, your opinions and beliefs. Therefore, personal narratives are more likely to use an informal tone compared to other types of narratives, with conversational language, colloquialisms and even humour.

Informative digital stories are used to share news, promote advances in different fields, advertise new products, or to convey instructional materials.

These stories can use both a formal and informal register and incorporate technical language or language specific to a society or discipline. They often rely on audio-visual media to serve as support resources that explain ‘how-to’ do things.

Historical digital stories can be a powerful tool to recount events from history.

Historical storytellers employ a formal register and factual language, usually including dates, statistics and other details.

They may incorporate various sources of information in their stories, such as photographs, newspaper headlines, transcripts, and other available materials to craft a narrative that adds depth and meaning to events from the past.

As the name suggests, fictional digital stories depict a made-up account of imaginary or real people and events told generally for entertainment.

This type of story has become a major outlet, particularly in the short-film industry, and may employ either a formal or informal register, shaping language in creative and unconventional ways.

Digital storytelling formats

In addition to the type of story you are telling, you need to consider the format that you want to use to convey your narrative.

Popular digital storytelling formats in contemporary media include articles and listicles, weblog and social media posts, e-books, animated graphics, videos, virtual/augmented reality, and so on. These all have unique storytelling features which can be used to encourage your audience to interact with your story in different ways.

It is a good idea to search online for examples of stories using varied formats to familiarise yourself with the advantages and limitations of each format. For example, if you are considering creating a blog post, look at a variety of blogs to help you understand the format better.

Digital audiences

Digital stories are typically aimed at a vastly different audience to traditional academic writing. You will first need to identify your audience, so that you can better tailor your content to communicate effectively with your intended audience.

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