What's Your Story?

I have a friend who insists he doesn't have any good stories to tell. Get him talking though, and he is one of the most fascinating people I know. His stories explain a lot about him and help me understand my story better; they make me think about things differently; they make me laugh, angry, and sometimes cry.

The truth is, we all have great stories to tell. Not only that, but we all have stories that someone else needs to hear.

Stories are the primary way tribes and families have preserved their heritage from generation to generation. They are also the tool of visionaries who push the edges of cultural progress. Storytellers challenge beliefs and doctrines. They open the doors to untouched emotions. They challenge the status-quo.

I've been thinking a lot lately about providing a safe and fun place for people in my town to share their sad, funny, insightful, or challenging stories with an audience who want/need to hear them.

If you've ever heard The Moth Radio; it's a lot like that. Each storyteller would prepare a 10-ish minute narrative (a true story about themselves) based on a theme for the evening. They'd share this story (not read this story) with a receptive audience, ready to listen and react.

We would do this 3 or 4 times a year at a friendly venue, preferably with a bar!

Topics would be pretty generic and wide-reaching: First Love (stories about falling in or out of love or tales about sexual encounters), Lessons Learned (stories about how learning hard life-lessons), or Growing Up (stories about when we were younger).

I'd like to start this in February of March of 2019.... That means I need to find 6 to 8 storytellers, diverse in age, gender, orientation, race, religion, and background, willing to write, be critiqued, edit, and perform their stories on the night of the event (I already have a few of you in mind). I need a venue. I need to get the word out so there is actually an audience listening to your stories!

Some of you don't think you have a story to share. Come and listen to others until you find your story.... It's out there.

Some of you know exactly what story to share. Come and share; impact, challenge, entertain an audience.

Let's talk soon....