--- title: "Co-Creating Stories: Chapters" description: "Small teams write successive chapters of a workplace case study following specific process steps. After each round, one team's chapter is selected at random as canon, and all teams must abandon their own drafts to continue from that story." last_updated: "2026-09-07" canonical: "https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/tgl-may-2012/" --- # Co-Creating Stories: Chapters Small teams write successive chapters of a workplace case study following specific process steps. After each round, one team's chapter is selected at random as canon, and all teams must abandon their own drafts to continue from that story. **Time:** 25 minutes. UWT suggested duration for a three-step narrative cycle based on the Chapters method from Thiagi GameLetter May 2012. **People:** 6 to 24. Teams of 3 to 4 participants. Any count from 6 to 24 partitions cleanly into combinations of 3 and 4 (for example, 7 splits into 3 and 4; 13 splits into 3, 3, 3, and 4; 17 splits into 3, 3, 3, 4, and 4). ## Choose this exercise **Purpose:** Practice applying sequential process stages by adapting an evolving fictional case under shifting narrative constraints. **Use it when:** Use during training on multi-step frameworks such as conflict mediation, change management, or performance consulting when participants need practice navigating downstream consequences. **Skip it when:** Skip when the group faces an active, real-time crisis that demands direct factual problem-solving rather than hypothetical narrative writing. ## Materials and tools - Lined paper pads (1 pad per in-person team) - Pens (1 per person) - Mediation Process Reference Card (1 copy per team) - Countdown timer - Shared digital document platform for remote or hybrid viewing ## Before participants arrive 1. Arrange room seating into team clusters of 3 or 4 people. 2. Distribute writing pads, pens, and one copy of the Mediation Process Reference Card to each table. 3. Display the three process steps where all participants can see them. ## Say this to open Today we are writing a serialized case study called Chapters. We will apply a three-step conflict mediation process: Step 1 is Frame the Situation, Step 2 is Hear Both Sides, and Step 3 is Establish a Common Goal. Look at your handout for the scenario: Alex and Morgan are clashing over a project release timeline and support coverage, with Jordan stepping in as mediator. In each round, every team writes a short chapter under 100 words. Then I will select one team at random to read their chapter aloud. That text becomes official canon for everyone. All other teams will discard their own drafts and write the next chapter based on that chosen text. ## How to run it ### 1. Introduce process and scenario (3 minutes) Deliver the opening script. Point out the three mediation steps on the reference card. Confirm the rule to keep each chapter under 100 words. Ask teams to agree on a volunteer scribe and reader for the first round, noting that these roles can rotate freely each round. ### 2. Draft Chapter 1 (5 minutes) Teams collaborate to write Chapter 1 in under 100 words, showing how Jordan frames the conversation. When the timer sounds, call on one team at random to read their chapter aloud. Announce that this chapter is now the room's canon. ### 3. Draft Chapter 2 (5 minutes) Instruct all teams to discard their original drafts. Each team writes Chapter 2 in under 100 words, continuing directly from the canon Chapter 1 to depict hearing both sides. When time expires, select another team at random to read their Chapter 2 aloud as canon. ### 4. Draft Chapter 3 (5 minutes) Instruct all teams to build directly on the canon Chapter 2 to write Chapter 3 in under 100 words, resolving how Jordan establishes a common goal. When time expires, select a final team at random to read their Chapter 3 aloud. This text becomes the official story conclusion, and remaining drafts are discarded. ### 5. Debrief process and adaptation (7 minutes) Facilitate a structured debrief. Invite 2 or 3 participants to comment on how adapting to another team's narrative shifted their plans, then take 2 brief responses on how the fictional mediator choices aided or hindered agreement. ## Debrief questions - How did adapting to another team's narrative change your plan for applying the next process step? - Which fictional mediator choices made reaching a shared goal easier or harder? - What does this exercise reveal about how early missteps compound in an actual mediation process? **Finished output:** A completed three-chapter case study documenting a fictional mediation from initial framing to common goal. ## Remote Run in video meeting software with breakout rooms for teams of 3 to 4. Maintain a single shared central document with sections for each team's draft workspace and a prominent Canon section at the top. After each round, bring everyone back to the plenary room, call on a team at random to read, and copy their text into the Canon section for everyone to view. ## Hybrid Form separate, intact teams of exclusively in-person or exclusively remote members. In-person scribes write on digital devices or paper. When an in-person or remote team's chapter is chosen as canon, the facilitator pastes or types that chapter into a single central shared document projected in the room and visible to remote members. ## Access and participation choices - Team roles rotate flexibly; any participant may choose to act as scribe, reader, brainstormer, or timekeeper without explanation. - Participants may decline to read aloud; another teammate or the facilitator can read the chapter instead. - Teams may write in bullet points or brief complete sentences according to their preference. ## If the session gets stuck **Teams get attached to their original storyline and resist continuing the chosen story.** Remind participants that discarding earlier drafts is the central mechanic of the exercise. Give teams 30 seconds of quiet reading time to absorb the canon chapter before drafting. **A team writes an unrealistic twist that derails the mediation process.** Remind teams that the story must explicitly demonstrate the assigned process step, grounding the actions in credible professional behavior. ## Terms used here - Chapters: A collaborative writing exercise where parallel groups draft story sections, but only one selected version becomes the canonical foundation for subsequent sections. - Canon: The single agreed-upon version of events that all teams must accept as factual for future chapters. ## Participant material: Mediation Process Reference Card PROCESS STAGES: 1. Frame the Situation: Acknowledge the dispute neutrally, set ground rules, and define the conversation's purpose. 2. Hear Both Sides: Allow each party to explain their perspective without interruption, noting underlying interests. 3. Establish a Common Goal: Identify shared needs or overarching organizational priorities that both parties support. SCENARIO STARTER: Alex (Customer Support Lead) and Morgan (Engineering Lead) are clashing over the project release timeline and support coverage. Jordan has stepped in as mediator. RULE REMINDER: Keep each chapter under 100 words. ## Sources and adaptation Observed in Thiagi GameLetter (May 2012), published by The Thiagi Group and authored by Sivasailam 'Thiagi' Thiagarajan. Thiagi GameLetter May 2012 described the Chapters method for process analysis. Retained the core mechanic of writing parallel chapters, randomly picking one as the continuing baseline, and discarding remaining drafts. UWT standardized the activity to 25 minutes across three stages, aligned the under 100 words constraint across the script, steps, and participant materials, clarified group partitioning arithmetic, unified the hybrid and remote document workflow, and ensured random selection across all rounds. [The Thiagi Group](http://thiagi.net/archive/www/pfp/IE4H/may2012.html) [The Thiagi Group](https://thiagi.net/archive/www/pfp/IE4H/may2012.html) Current run sheet: https://unitedwetransform.com/exercises/tgl-may-2012/