Selfish and Selfless Approaches Fail. Learn What Works.
Published 18 days ago • 2 min read
Hi Reader,
There’s a flawed instinct on both ends of the storytelling spectrum.
Some people approach storytelling purely for themselves—protect, control, extract. Others swing the opposite direction—give it away, defer, hope it works out.
Both approaches are flawed.
Selfish is short-sighted. Selflessness is unsustainable. I've learned this the hard way.
The right approach is to align the work in a collaborative, equitable way that creates value for everyone involved.
That includes the team of creators who shape the story, the people who lived it, and the audience it ultimately reaches.
Everything we’re building with STORYSMART® comes back to that idea and that’s the thread running through this edition.
You’ll see it in the personal reset I had to make with my business and myself. The realization that I was that proverbial cobbler whose son had no shoes led me to change how I tell stories.
You’ll also see it in:
a real-world example of how a reported story about the U.S. airman shot down in Iran is being turned into a movie deal
in the long road from a shoebox of materials to a screenplay
and in what I learned while building owned media inside a professional organization.
Different contexts. Similar lessons in professional storytelling at the highest level to produce stories that connect and endure.
I hope you’ll also see how you can begin to take a more active role in this process and approach it the right way.
If you’ve been following along, this is the next step.
If you’re new, you're in the right place.
Welcome to our community. I'm grateful you're here.
Let's get to it,
Ron
1. Feature Article
The Cobbler's Son Finally Gets Shoes
Why I'm Changing How I (& STORYSMART®) Tell Stories
St. Louis, MO May 1, 2026 - I talk a good game, but I haven't exactly been walking the walk when it comes to being STORYSMART® myself.
I've been "all hat, no horse" to borrow a line from Heartland, one of my favorite series.
In this post, I cowboy up to the fact that I've been that proverbial cobbler whose son has no shoes.
How the Story of a U.S. Airman Shot Down In Iran is Already Becoming A Feature Film
When I saw the Deadline headline, I wasn't surprised. Warner Bros. had moved quickly to win a bidding war for the rights to a story published by the New York Times.
The New York Times story was a gripping account of a U.S. Airman and a high-stakes rescue mission to Iran. This is the kind of story that seems engineered for the screen.
Clear stakes. Real danger. A narrative that unfolds with tension and precision.
What caught my attention wasn't the subject matter, but the speed of the deal and how it reveals what most people misunderstand about how true stories become films. The airman himself doesn't really factor into the green-light decision.
6. Want to Learn More about the STORYSMART® Framework?
Hollywood Insiders Know the Playbook. Now You Can Too.
7. Archive of Newsletters
Missed a Prior Newsletter? You will find them here.
About Our STORYSMART® Perspective
We approach storytelling and filmmaking as a long-term, rights-first business rather than a project-by-project creative exercise. Our focus is on understanding how stories create value over time through ownership, disciplined development, and thoughtful risk management.
The ideas shared here are intended to contribute to a broader conversation about sustainable, independent media, not to promote specific projects or investment opportunities.
