I started off as a nay-sayer and doubter around user stories in the Agile/Scrum space. I haven't completely revised that view, but kind of. I like the way stories let people work together. Stories are so much friendlier as a metaphor for discussing requirements. Everybody's got a story to tell - right. Of course. Everybody's got a voice and they want to be heard. I like that. It's inclusive.

But, of course, I also have reservations. The idea that all stories are equal doesn't add up. The As as... I need to ... So that ... form is good as far as it goes. But it's an invitation to a conversation - and frankly what good is an invitation if nobody sets a date! Think about it. "Yeah, we really must talk about this story sometime" Yeah - when? So the story doesn't get talked about and the planning meeting comes along and all these smart people are trying to do planning poker and the facts just are not available. Silly. Alistair Cockburn says on this subject that questions need to be answered in analysis time not in programming time. Makes sense. Lean says 'eliminate waste' right? Well, there is a lot of waste build into the process of managing stories.

So, I got so intrigued by what seems to me glaring problems with user stories, I started blogging! Yes blogging at masterstoryteller.co.uk. What I aim to do is come up with a synthesis of uses cases and user stories. And why not? Up for a challenge.

Peter