The Art of Narrative, Storytelling, and Storymaking.
Infographic: Storytelling vs. Corporate Speak
I love infographics. They’re fun, friendly, and they just want to be shared. Because they’re a stand along file they’re easily passed around via email and blogs. Why aren’t we all making them? From The Hoffman Agency comes the following…
Is Live Storytelling the Only True Form of Storytelling?
Recently, Sean Buvala (@storyteller on Twitter) tweeted,
Sean has been a storytelling professional for over two decades. He lives this stuff. He created the website Storyteller.net before the web ever thought about storytelling. I respect and value his work immensely. However, I disagree with his stance.
He’s not alone. I have encountered many storytellers—all live performing stand-up-in-front-of-an-audience type storytellers—who share the sentiment that performative storytelling is the only true storytelling. (I once met a famous performance storyteller with the initials DW who told me that the Moth brand of first person storytelling was not real storytelling.)
If it’s not live, people to people, it’s not storytelling. It’s one of many other amazing and equal arts that use story.
I am a bass player. When I was in my 20s I played with a band and we got a gig in New York City. The band that went on before us played super intense heavy metal music. They stood in place staring at their hands with their speakers shaking the walls behind them. Not only did they play their songs with precision, they also brought with them their own giant light show. However, despite all the hoopla, they failed to win the audience.
After their set, one of the members said to his band mates, “What’s wrong with this audience? These people don’t know real music when they hear it.”
Whenever someone says that something outside of their mindset is not the real deal, they are usually a purveyor of, or practitioner of, what they consider real. I’m no different. I think that having an open standpoint is more advantageous than compartmentalizing. There are amazing insights to learn when we look at disparate topics (or just about everything) as forms of storytelling.
Live storytelling is only one of many storytelling forms.
5 Key Questions to Ask When Crafting Your Story
1. What is the Purpose of Your Story?
Why are you taking up someone’s time and attention? What do you want them to learn, do, think, feel?
2. What is the Value of Your Story?
Why does your message have meaning to the person/people listening? Are they being entertained or educated? Informed or sold?
3. What is the Emotion of Your Story?
Do you want your audience to laugh? Cry? Feel scared or safe? In the end, your story will make people feel either positive or negative overall. Whatever you do, make sure your audience feels something.
4. How do the Elements of Your Story Serve the Purpose of Your Story?
Does the story you’re telling convey or reinforce what the audience values? Do any of your story’s elements distract from your purpose? If the purpose in telling your story is to influence an audience to buy the pizza you’re selling, then you want your story to highlight your pizza’s value. Everything else should end up on the cutting room floor.
5. What is the Best Way to Deliver Your Story?
Does your delivery method serve the purpose of clearly conveying the story without distraction? Does it reinforce the value(s) of the story? Does the delivery method in and of itself carry an emotional charge? Does your delivery method serve the purpose of your story?
Call for Papers, Narrative Matters 2012: Life and Narrative
Call for Papers, Narrative Matters 2012: Life and Narrative
The American University of Paris
CONFERENCE DATES: May 29th to June 1st 2012
DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING ABSTRACTS: November 15, 2011
The American University of Paris, The University of Paris Diderot-Paris 7, and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research on Narrative at St. Thomas University, invite scholars from all disciplines to reflect upon the productive interplay between life and narrative.
What is the relationship between life and narrative? As noted by Jerome Bruner in his article on “Life as Narrative” (1987), this is one of the central intellectual questions facing narrative inquiry and narrative practice across multiple disciplines – psychology, narratology and literary theory, digital media, sociology, history, sociolinguistics, philosophy, medicine, education, gerontology, communications, social work, ethics, religious studies, etc. Indeed, there is broad agreement that narrative representations (from novels to histories, biographies, websites, films, museums) and life are essential to each other. Narrative draws upon life for inspiration to create an imagined world that has substance, color, texture, and meaning. Meanwhile, life draws upon narrative for resources to imagine our identity and to interpret others, situations, and the “real” world. Both are involved in an intricate exchange, playing off one another, informing and creating one another. However, the relationship between life and narrative – between experience and story - is not merely theoretical in nature but practical as well. Narrative has a profound impact on our understanding of what it means to be human; of the choices we make as persons; of the nature of health and wellness, teaching and learning; of the meaning of history; of how social groups work through conflict; and of how the cultural and political world is ordered.
Panels and papers
Scholars are invited to organize panel sessions and present papers on various aspects of the broad theme of “Life and Narrative.” Possible questions include:
- What is the relationship between telling and living?
- How can the narrative concept help us to better understand experience, interpretation and action?
- What does literature teach us about aspects of life, experience, mind, and social relationships?
- How can narrative research have a greater impact on the lives of real persons and institutions? How can narrative theory and practice better inform one another?
- Can there be a “true” narrative? What are the boundaries between fact and fiction, between autobiography and autofiction?
- How is identity storied, restoried, even de-storied across the lifespan?
- What is the effect of the media (new and old) on identity?
- What is the relationship between what is archived in individual memories and social institutions and the stories that we tell?
Conversations
Two plenary sessions will ask prominent scholars from different disciplines to present a short paper and discuss a central question related to life and narrative. Time will be given for debate and interaction between the presenters and the audience.
Confirmed Plenary speakers
Mark Freeman, College of The Holy Cross
Alexandra Georgakopoulou-Nunes, Kings College London
James Phelan, Ohio State University
Comparing interpretations
A final plenary will compare and contrast approaches to the study of narrative. Our plenary speakers will discuss approaches to the study of research interviews and literature. The audience will be provided with the texts in advance of the plenary and will be given ample opportunity to exchange ideas with the panelists.
Language
Although the language of the conference will be in English, papers delivered in French are welcome. Scholars presenting papers in French are requested to bring a translated copy of their paper to the conference for distribution to the audience.
Workshops
Preconference workshops will be organized, principally for graduate students and beginning scholars, along the following themes:
- Translating narrative theory
- Doing narrative inquiry
- Digital narratives
- Narrative and social change
Guidelines for submissions
We welcome proposals for individual papers (20 minutes plus ten minutes for questions) and panels (90 minutes). Submissions should be in the language of presentation (English or French). Please submit your proposal, including an abstract of less than 250 words, on-line at: http://my.aup.edu/conference/narrative-matters-2012
Abstracts are due on November 15, 2011.
Publications
An edited book will be published including the best submissions from the conference. If you would like your paper to be considered, please submit a complete draft no later than May 30, 2012.
Conference website
Coming soon.
Contact information
If you have questions, please email us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Organizing committee
Brian Schiff. The American University of Paris.
Sylvie Patron.The University of Paris Diderot-Paris 7.
Claudia Roda. The American University of Paris.
William Randall. St. Thomas University.
Elizabeth McKim. St. Thomas University.
Andrea Olguin. The American University of Paris.
Bill Cosby Carnegie Mellon Keynote Speech
When Dr. Cosby starts to tell his story about getting started in stand-up comedy you will find that you are along for a ride that is well worth the trip!
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