Sunday, November 25, 2007

Quotation from Card

"Reach high, for stars lie hidden in you.
Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal."

-Rabindranath Tagore

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Workshop Notes

Here are some notes about collecting stories from the "Recovering the Story from History" on November 24 with Carol Leigh Wehking and Glenna Janzen.
-many different perception and perspectives
-you can string together a series of interesting events and still have a bad story
-putting a human face on it
-cultivate ability to read between the lines of what is already in print
-think about repeating stories/themes after or during the interview
-putting phrases from the interviewee into the story
-respect your sources
-transcribe, let everything cook, and check- modify as necessary
-some kind of problem, resolution and ending
-feeling that it is "a whole story"
-critical- look for incidents, throw up in air- sometimes will become a story or angle
-play with events and incidents
-sometimes you need to manufacture an ending
-as for the ending- if that is not where the story is going, then it won't work as an ending
-naming characters vs. not naming them
-story development: all images in head and put together like puzzle pieces
-phrases, work in sections, start to get those phrases that are making a story
-the senses
-using shapes from a different medium as a model, springboard
-your audience has to be your creative partner
-you do need some images, but you don't need a clutter or images
eg: "the smell of wet wool"
-think about interior as well as exterior landscape
-there are many paths into a story
-have to know the facts and the context
-facts do not always equal the truth

Shaping your story:
-selectivity is the key to creating art from life
know the elements:
-know how and where your story begins
-what is your chief event? conflict or obstacle? resolved or not?
-be sure you know how and where your story ends
-try it out! Tell it, listen to it, shape it, prune it, nurture it!

What piques your interest/inspires you/catches your fancy?

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Project Has Begun!

Yeah! I just recently started a project through the BraveHeart Storytellers Inc. and Manitoba Youth Serves to collect stories from people who have survived bullying experiences. If you have a story to tell, please get in touch with me. I can be e-mailed at surviving.bullying@gmail.com