From data to narrative
Learn why data presentations often fail, and how story structure can make insights easier to understand, trust, and act on.
Wiley • February 2025 • 272 pages
Become a Great Data Storyteller
Learn how to turn data into stories people remember. Become a Great Data Storyteller shows how to move beyond charts and dashboards to build data-driven narratives with characters, conflict, structure, and purpose.
12
chapters from storytelling foundations to retelling
3 acts
a cinematic framework adapted to data communication
1 goal
help readers drive change with clearer, human-centered data stories
What makes this book different
It treats data storytelling like storycraft: hero, sidekick, antagonist, climax, audience,
and next steps all become part of a practical framework.
Build your cast
Discover how to identify the hero, sidekick, problem, and antagonist hidden inside your data.
Adapt to the audience
Shape the same story differently depending on what your audience wants, knows, and thinks.
A practical roadmap for persuasive data communication
The book starts from a simple question: why do some data presentations get ignored while others create change? The answer is not only better charts, but stronger storytelling.
What readers will learn
- How to build a data story with a clear narrative arc
- How to use cinematic techniques to organize insight
- How to communicate context, tension, and resolution
- How to retell stories across formats and channels
“You’ll discover your role as a narrative guide, learning how to employ the power of context to make your data-driven stories not just informative but captivating.”Publisher description
Analysts, researchers, journalists, educators, and decision-makers
Data professionals
Transform analytical work into stories that stakeholders can follow and use.
Communicators
Bring together narrative, audience empathy, and evidence in one repeatable process.
Teams in change
Use data stories to align people around a problem, a message, and a next step.