The Art of Storytelling

We, as humans, are wired for story. We learn more when we hear a story, and we tend to express ourselves in story form.  Even the Savior used stories, or parables, to teach his disciples. There are professional storytellers who have tapped into this knowledge, and have created a new brand of performance: storytelling. Storytellers have many different styles and approaches to telling their stories, but there are three things all storytellers agree on: you must (a) have a set structure to your story, (b) tell your story—speak it aloud—multiple times before you perform it in front of an audience, and (c) have a “most important thing” in your story.

Story Structure

Structure is important in all forms of writing. Formal papers, essays, plays, and movies must all be outlined before any solid, permanent work can be done. Storytelling is no different. There are many ways to create a “story map”, or outline a story’s plot”:

·      Create a traditional outline with bullets points.

·      Draw a timeline and decide the order of events in a story.

·      Use the episodic structure to find the inciting incident and climax of the story.

An episodic story map looks a little something like this:

Exposition is the background information to your story. It establishes the “who, what, when, where” of the story. The inciting incident is the moment that the conflict of the story is introduced. For example, in Star Wars, the inciting incident is when Luke returns to find his Aunt and Uncle’s farm destroyed. The incident sends the hero on his journey. The rising action is the events that lead up to the climax, which is the highest point of tension in the story. The denouement, or falling action of a story is the resolution—peace is restored. 

By using such a structure as this, you will have a better idea of where your story is headed, and can therefore piece together a story that is fluid and effective.

Practice

It is said that you ought to practice and tell your story six times before you actually perform.  This allows the storyteller to experience how words feel when spoken. It also helps you improve your story because you see how different audiences react to your words. Telling your story once is worth thinking about it ten times. If you simply think about your story, you sell yourself short.

The Most Important Thing

The “most important thing” is a story’s theme or moral. It’s what you want the audience to take from your telling when all is said and done. It gives your story purpose, which drives you as you tell it. Without a most important thing, your story has no meaning and often falls short.

It takes time to become a skilled storyteller; however, we are programed to tell stories. By using an outline, practicing your story aloud, and finding your story’s most important thing, you will find that creating a story to tell is easier than you think.

Lessons Learned and Lived

Middle school is a tough time for just about everyone. I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone say, “Man, middle school was the time of my LIFE!”  Most people were, in fact, miserable. The reason for this is very simple: puberty. During middle school, students are growing into their adult selves, and are discovering who they really are and who they want to become. And the fact that sexual attraction is really thrown into the mix of new experiences. Claws tend to appear as territory is discovered and claimed, and they come in groups.

I was no exception to this rule. I moved during seventh grade—in the midst of all things horrible and middle-school-ish. I was placed on the “going somewhere fast” track, as opposed to the normal track. I was shy, but I quickly made friends amongst my fellow nerds. One such student was Trixie. Trixie was outgoing and loved musical theatre like I did. We are also members of the same church, which helped us bond. We became fast friends. We both needed it; I was new in town, and Trixie didn’t have many friends. Trixie’s mother once told me that I was “an answer to their prayers.” No pressure, right?

Well, middle school being the way it was, I became more concerned with how the “in” crowd saw me. Of course, the group of kids to be a part of at my school was a group of nerds, but they were cool nerds.  I simply had to be a part of their group! Unfortunately, they did not like Trixie. They didn’t think she was “outgoing.” They thought she was loud and obnoxious. I didn’t agree with them at first, but… You know, I began to think, they’re kind of right. Why does she respond to everything?  Once I noticed it, I couldn’t un-notice it. Soon, I began avoiding her at school and ignoring her phone calls. I didn’t think anything of it at the time. I was just trying to fit in.

And I did. The popular group of kids finally welcomed me into their inner circle. I got ready for school dances with them, played night games with them, and even got to sit by them at our favorite pizza place. I remember one time we were there for a fundraiser, and all of my friends sat at a big table towards the back of the room. There was a half-wall and window that separated our eating area from the rest of the restaurant.  Through the window, we had a perfect view of the door. So when Trixie came in, my friends knew right away. They all gasped and said, “Quick, duck! It’s Trixie! We can’t let her see us, she’ll want to sit with us.”  I complied, doing as my friends. We all giggled, so proud of our quick thinking and good timing.

A few minutes later, as we relaxed back into normal conversation, I looked through the window and saw Trixie passing. We made eye contact through the glass, and I saw such sadness in here eyes. My stomach churned. She knew.  She knew we had seen her. She knew we had hid. She knew I was a part of that group. This poor, tender girl who had once considered me to be her best friend had to watch as I scoffed at her expense. I was heart-broken.

In true middle-school fashion, the guilt passed and I returned to my old, horrible ways. However, now that I’ve grown, I look back on that experience with such disappointment. I could have had such a positive impact on that girl’s life, but instead I had a demeaning one. And that’s something I’ll always have to live with.  

Creativity: The Most Important Element of Business Writing

As a Theatre Arts major, and a patron of all the arts, I value creativity.  Though business is much more utilitarian field than theatre, I feel that communication in business benefits greatly from the use of one’s imagination. Each element of a document can benefit from creativity and innovation to create a more effective piece of writing, much like the left, logical half of the brain can be enhanced by the originality of the right half of the brain.

Creativity is a given when it comes to the design of a document. Design requires the writer use his or her creativity to command the reader’s attention. Effective design takes a drab, black and white blob and transforms it into something more. Fonts are chosen and enlarged and spaces and lines are used to create distinctions between sections of the document. Pictures are added to enhance the argument of a document. An effective design invites a reader in and excites them about the topic at hand. Without originality in the design, a document will have not have this affect.

Organization of a piece of writing can also benefit from a creative touch. A written work ought to have a flow to it, with transitions that carry a reader smoothly from one point to the next. It should read as a slow, meticulous paint stroke might feel. The ingenuity of the order in which topics are laid out and the transitions between them help to create a more unified, sophisticated, and effective document.

Content benefits the most from using creativity. With art, the goal is to create something that no one else has thought of before. This is difficult, however, because of the sheer mass of innovative ideas. The best way to overcome this obstacle is to put a new twist on an old tale; take what you know and present it in a new way. Those in business must do the same thing. The trick of a successful piece of writing might be a new point of view, or a reversal of tactics. Content must be complete, correct, and clear, but it can do so in an original way. The innovations in content will draw in readers more effectively.

Style, like design, lends itself to creativity. Words must be strung together in a way that creates a clear image for the reader.  Common, easily understood words should of course be used, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use the same words in a new way.  The sentences and paragraphs can be used to create a world exactly to the specifications of the reader. By using inspiring words in a new way, you can successfully transport the reader to that new world, and convince them that it is real and wonderful.

Theatre likes to be extravagant and creative, and I think business ought to follow suit.  Without creativity and imagination, there is little spirit to captivate and audience. And if you can’t captivate an audience, convincing them will be even harder.