Liz Warren | Storyteller

I’m teaching Using Storytelling in a Variety of Settings at the SMCC Storytelling Institute this spring, so I’ve been thinking about the range of things that storytellers are asked to do. The list below is what I’ve come up with so far. For each of these, the setting will, of course, make a huge difference in how tellers  prepare and what they tell.  For example, telling in a retirement community or a nursing home requires different preparation than telling at an outdoor festival or an elementary school classroom. Similarly, telling to 30 people is different than giving a presentation to 400. Each setting has it’s own requirements and blessings. What they have in common is the need for someone – the storyteller – to create an authentic moment of connection for the listeners. 

• Tell stories at an event or in a specific setting
  • By yourself
  • With other people
• Tell stories while teaching or speaking in a specific setting
  • Are you giving a keynote, making a presentation at a library about your favorite topic?
• Tell stories and engage people in dialogue and discussion about them
  • Public setting, like a concert or class
  • Private, or individual setting
• Teach people the basics of storytelling
  • Organizers for adult events in a whole range of settings usually want to know how to quickly find and craft a personal story
    • This is usually good for older students, too.
  • Organizers for children, especially elementary and middle school, usually want them to learn how to find and tell traditional stories (folktales, myths, legends)
• Teach people an advanced or specialized storytelling technique
  • For example, integrating movement into storytelling, or how to tell to preschoolers
• Teach people the basics of storytelling and how to use it in a specific setting
  • The needs of people working in an interpretive setting (a guide or docent) are different than those working in a healing setting (a hospice nurse).
• Teach people a specialized storytelling technique for a specific setting
  • For example, how to prepare and deliver stories in an advocacy setting (like a legislative hearing)
• Organize and conduct a storytelling event
  • Single event, like a night of stories
  • Multiple events, like an after-school program, or a series at a library or museum
  • Coordinate the storytelling portion of a larger event
• Emcee or officiate at an event
  •  Storytellers are often asked to emcee, but also to officiate at ceremonies like weddings and funerals.  
• Coach tellers for a storytelling event (see above)
  • Individual
  • Group
  • In person, or on the phone or Zoom.
• Conduct story circles to build community
  • Different groups or contexts, different ways to organize
• Create the materials or curricula to support any of the above
  • Teach others to use the materials and curricula

Did I miss something?  Let me know in the comments below!