tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post3519741168084542753..comments2023-12-30T06:06:51.940-08:00Comments on Breaking the Eggs: Why Memoir? Part 1Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15432302620700328040noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post-18193863476672207662008-04-22T13:30:00.000-07:002008-04-22T13:30:00.000-07:00Yeah that people are taking time to tell stories a...Yeah that people are taking time to tell stories and to listen to them!<BR/>I think traditional tales are marvelous in their ability to use metaphor or select ethno-centric comsological images to convey a message. These stories have a magical quality that can't be beat.<BR/>And yet, it is the personal story that has lately taken the stage, and not just in storytelling but in writing as well. Am sure you are all familiar with the narrative and personal essay formats that have appeared on the short story scene in the past few decades.<BR/>What I find fascinating is that, for the most part, these new options create a pathway for people to become personally involved in telling a story and it can't be denied that telling portions/fragments of one's own story is both illustrative and cathartic. <BR/>This is not to be confused with "giving voice" to one's life as one is often encouraged to do in psychotherapeutic settings, but rather an affirmation that "yes, one person's story might really matter to others."<BR/>Let's face it, not every one is a brer rabbit or coyote who steals the fire... but everyone has been in some fashion at some time a folk hero or connected to one. This is what I suspect the leaning towards personal storytelling suggests.<BR/>I know, as author of "Family Folktales: Write Your Own Family Stories" (www.folkheartpress.com) that individual connections to folklore motifs are not only filled with creative potential, they are also bridges to the past where traditional tales live.<BR/>And who knows? Perhaps there will come a time when these stories (which are universal, too, like traditional tales) will become as treasured as traditional stories are.<BR/>Best to all and keep up the good work of keeping stories alive for everyone!!!folkheart presshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16145392004187665823noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post-80085891667877049062008-04-09T10:15:00.000-07:002008-04-09T10:15:00.000-07:00What I have been whining about all along is balanc...What I have been whining about all along is balance. Never either/or. Just balance the personal with the traditional or likewise in order to be seen as distinct from the comedian.About Sean Buvalahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15676753252592150679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post-496837675119521752008-04-09T08:18:00.000-07:002008-04-09T08:18:00.000-07:00Great posts, Tim. I think that there's a big buffe...Great posts, Tim. I think that there's a big buffet of stories and that listeners have different appetites: some want to snack on personal stories, some want a helping of tradition. Some want both. Some don't even realize they're hungry until they see what is offered.<BR/><BR/>I went to the National Storytelling Festival last year for the first time since 2001. I heard Dolores Hydock tell her hour-long Medieval tale, "The Story of Silence" to a packed tent. She got a well-deserved standing ovation. The listeners were clearly hungry for a long traditional tale. I also sat in packed tents to hear Kathryn Windham and Donald Davis tell personal stories. Listeners were just as hungry for that wonderful fare.<BR/><BR/>I write this the day before the long traditional story festival, Going Deep http://www.goingdeepstories.com . As one of the organizers, I often get e-mails from folks who love the long trad form. <BR/><BR/>Maybe it's not either/or.PriscillaHowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01675234720604602209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post-21798703003199264212008-04-04T12:23:00.000-07:002008-04-04T12:23:00.000-07:00I have oftened wondered if the folktale, fairy tal...I have oftened wondered if the folktale, fairy tale, myth etc. are going to disappear just as most folk songs and ballads have (somthing I am trying to prevent at least with kids songs).<BR/><BR/>I love storytelling both listening to and telling them. I have heard storytellers telling personal stories and have enjoyed them but when I go to a festival I am more interested in hearing traditional tales retold. <BR/><BR/>Personal stories have their place but too often I feel that they serve no more purpose than to allow the teller to vent or reminisce. I have heard personal tales that make you think; that give you that "aha" moment. I love those!<BR/><BR/>When working with "troubled" children, we started with traditional tales that "naturally" evolved into more "personal" stories as the children told them.<BR/>To me, that was a wonderful blend of the two types of stories.<BR/><BR/>As to why the audiences like personal stories....Why do American audiences watch so much "real life" television? <BR/><BR/>Why are more storytellers telling personal tales? Possibly because so many, audiences, are willing to come and listen...round and round....<BR/><BR/>Love your blog!<BR/><BR/>La...hereisastory@gmail.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1285009.post-47603558566463262602008-04-04T11:38:00.000-07:002008-04-04T11:38:00.000-07:00Ya' missed the point in my posting. It's not about...Ya' missed the point in my posting. It's not about what storytellers and comedians perceive themselves as...intent...it is all about how the audience perceives what is happening from the performer. I'm not concerned with the navel-gazing introspection of the performers, <A HREF="http://wheresmyquarter.blogspot.com/2008/01/outside-in-storytelling-model.html" REL="nofollow">we are an audience-centered art form</A>. Our audiences don't see a difference between comedians and storytellers- that is where the problems is. What a storyteller intends in telling personal tales is irrelevant- what modern audiences are perceiving is what counts...storytellers are comedians are storytellers. <BR/><BR/>And as far as masking goes- are you saying that storytellers aren't presenting personas/masks to the audience? I would beg to differ, if differ we do. I might be reading that wrong. <BR/><BR/>And to answer the question you ask in the title, you answer it in the two lines of paragraphs 4 and 5.<BR/><BR/>This is a very good posting, Tim.About Sean Buvalahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15676753252592150679noreply@blogger.com