The “What If” Storytelling Framework: How To Build A Step-By-Step Guide With Iterative Prompts

Ahoy, Digital Writers!

Last week I read 2 different emails that taught me the “What If” method for generating story ideas.

Both left me wanting more. Because they told me what to do, but now how. And I wanted to know how!

Has that every happened to you?

I’m betting yes.

So today I want to show you how I worked with AI to fill in the missing “how-to” gap for the “what if” storytelling technique. And I’m going to show you how I used AI to build my own step-by-step guide so you can too!

Let’s dive in!

The “What If” Storytelling Technique

Here’s a quick paraphrase from one of the emails:

There is one question that opens up endless creativity

And it will change your world. Set your imagination on fire. And give you a never ending supply of interesting stories.

The question: "What if?"

Here’s how it works:

Look around you. Make an observation and ask the “What If” question of any object you see. For example, let’s say you notice the paint on your wall, you would ask something like, “What if paint could talk?” or “What if we only had 1 color to choose from?” or “What if Michelangelo painted the wall?”

Tell that story.

You get the idea.

If you need a story idea, find an object, start asking what if questions, and then write.

Simple enough.

But when I tried it for myself, I immediately got stuck searching my brain for a "what if" question. My mind went blank. “What if you get stuck coming up with what if questions?” Then what happens.

I will tell you.

You ask yourself, “What am I missing here?” and then you call up the Digital Intern.

Here’s what happened:

How I Created The “What If” Storytelling Framework From Scratch: 5 Lessons In Iterative Prompting

First, before I went to ChatGPT I thought about what I was missing.

I needed a lens for asking “What if.” A good “What If” question comes down to how you position it. And I wanted some categories to help me.

What follows is a list of the 5 lessons I learned along the way, so you can avoid my mistakes, learn from them, and see how I iterated my way into creating a framework with AI.

By the end of this post you’ll have:

• A prompt to create 6 “What If” questions to help you tell a creative story.

• A prompt that builds the “What If” Storytelling Framework that you can expand for your own storytelling needs.

• A prompt and a process to generate any Step-By-Step Guide / Framework you want for yourself to make writing them a breeze.

• And you’ll learn how to transform a series of iterative prompts into a single mega-prompt that you can use on repeat.

Let’s go!

Lesson #1: Be Clear

This was my first prompt.