I have good news and bad news for you, friends. The bad news: I can’t teach you to “be a storyteller.” The good news: You already are a storyteller, though you may not know it yet. What I can teach you is how to find a good story, some tips for making it your own, and suggestions for how to deliver that story to your audience.

You think you aren’t a storyteller? You tell “stories” every day, you just don’t call them that. Since mankind first spoke a word aloud, people have talked in “story.” It’s a natural part of our language patterns. Now, it’s true that you may not ever become a “professional storyteller,” but you don’t have to do that. Storytelling can enrich your life whether you want to share stories with your children, regale your friends at parties, thrill the scouts with a ghost story around a campfire, get across ideas to co-workers, or simply feel more comfortable speaking in front of people.

If you think you would like to try it, this is the first part of a series about storytelling. Before I begin, I want you to do one thing: Give yourself “permission.” That’s right. Do not think to yourself, “I can’t do that.” Think, “I am a storyteller.”

Some of you have told me, “I wouldn’t be able to memorize a story!” Good! That’s not what I want you to do. It’s true that many of the ancient bards, griots, and senaches learned epic tales and passed them down through the generations word for word. More often just “regular” people, like you and me, hear a story and use our imagination on it. We change the story into words that “fit our own mouth” and tell it. That’s one of the reasons that there are so many variants of the “Cinderella motif.” Nearly every culture has a version of the story, because storytellers changed the story to fit their own culture. Unless you are using a story to teach about a culture or time, you have permission to change it! Make it yours; then it will be much easier to remember.

The first step is to define just what a “story” is. It’s a sequence of events involving a character(s) who has a dilemma to resolve. It’s a picture painted with words. It has a beginning, a middle, and an end (which is the hardest part for most storytellers to remember!). You do not have to “paint” your characters to the last detail, but give the audience enough of a description that their own imagination can take your words and form an image.

You have some advantages when telling a story out loud, as opposed to writing it on paper:

1) You do not memorize; you know the sequence of events. If you memorize that story and “hit a slick spot,” you may not be able to stop the slide. As long as you know “what happens next,” you can improvise if you forget how you wanted to tell it. That’s how many “new” stories are born.
2) YOU are the storyteller. Any way you tell the story is “the right way.”
3) As opposed to writing, you have more “tools” than just the words. You have your face, your body language, and most importantly your voice.

Purists will tell you that “storytelling is relating the story without the aid of props or costumes.” Hogwash! I don’t use either, but I’m not opposed to it, if it doesn’t get in the way of the story. I once told a group of children a Japanese story about a “magic fan.” It wasn’t until I got to the end of the story that I discovered they were visualizing an “oscillating fan”, because they had never seen a “paper fan.” I bet they didn’t get much out of that story!

Can you think of a story you might like to tell? I hope to give a bibliography later in the week of good sources for “folk tales.” Most of the stories I tell are re-written folk tales (because they are in the public domain) or stories that I wrote myself. Keep in mind as you choose a first story that it should be rather short, with few characters. Give yourself a chance for success! Most audiences have a relatively short attention span, and you don’t want to have to remember too many details the first time out of the gate.

Once you find the story you want to tell:

1) Read the story from beginning to end several times.
2) Read it out loud so you can “taste” the words.
3) As you read, visualize the characters and the setting. See the action in your own mind. You have to see it yourself in order to describe it to someone else. I like to think of a story as a film clip. If the characters remind me of someone I know, then I’m seeing that person acting out the story as I read it. Some of my friends would be very surprised to know what story they “people” for me!
4) Put down the book, and from your own memory write an outline of the story (or create a “web” if that’s what you learned to do in school). Some storytellers I know draw a cartoon comic strip instead.
5) Once you have completed your outline, refer to the written story to make certain you haven’t left anything out that is crucial to the plot.
6) For me, this is the point when I start telling the story to myself. I’m an “aural” learner. If I hear me telling the story, I retain it. Sometimes in the beginning of my career, I recorded the story on audio tape to help myself learn it. Other people learn by writing it down in their own words. You have to choose what is the correct way for you. [At some point, you will want that story either recorded on tape or written so that you don't "lose" it from your memory.]

If you are wanting to tell, you have your “assignment.” Find a story you want to tell and start learning the sequence of events in the story. I will work on updating my bibliography for anyone who wants some examples of stories [HINT: the 398.2 section, or "Folktale Section,” of your local library or your children’s bookshelf is a good place to start]. Keep dropping in to visit. I plan to give you some hints on personalizing your stories and then on actually “delivering” them to the audience.

Please do not be reluctant to ask questions or comment. If there is no give and take between us so that I can help you, then you might as well be reading a book from the library.

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