3 Simple Storifying Tools For Effective Science And Nature Writing

“No one can hit their target with their eyes closed” – Paolo Coelho

Eranthemum Sanguinolentum engraved by Benjamin Fawcett (1808–1893) for Shirley Hibberd’s (1825–1890) New and Rare Beautiful-Leaved Plants. Digitally enhanced from Rawpixel’s 1929 edition of the publication (Public Domain).

In their book Re:imagining Change, authors Reinsborough and Canning argue that we risk getting inundated by the complexity of the dots we want to connect– and lose our audience as a result — if we don’t focus on storytelling strategy.

What storytelling strategies can connect the dots from the local to global, to make people *think* and *feel* and (hopefully) *act* on the data, research, and ideas we are communicating?

Here are some simple tools for ‘storifying’ my science and nature writing I’ve found helpful:

1. The Message Box

I finished my PhD a couple of years ago (yay!). But I still find the same genre of advice (writing tips for struggling PhDers) to be extremely helpful for any career type or stage where effective research writing and data communication are key.

The message box is one diagram I’ve archived, especially usefully when I need to put a presentation of data/research together quickly: