What a show! We had a full house and lots of names in Mr Coffee. Thank you all so much for coming out and supporting everyone who walked up to the mic. 

I don’t have my notes with me today, and I want to get this info out as soon as possible, so I won’t be able to do my usual show wrap-up. The good news is that there are a bunch of great shows coming up for everyone who loves the kind of stories we tell at FGS.

You can see three of our tellers tomorrow at Unexpected Productions. They’ll tell stories, and then the UP improv team will do their take on what they just heard. It’s a great twist on storytelling, and I always love to see what part of each story the improv folks focus on. I’ll be co-hosting along with beloved UP producer Kent Whipple.

Kent loves us so much he’s giving FGS folks 20% off their ticket with the code “Freshground”

Come see us tomorrow

Bonus: The website shows a photo of me without a beard.

Monday, I’ll be telling a story from 10 years ago at this lovely show:

https://www.meetup.com/the-artists-way-accountability/events/316277439

I love the folks who run this show so I’m always happy when they ask me to join them. 

It’s at the Royal Room at 5000 Rainier Ave S. Show starts at 7:00. I hope to see some of you in the audience!

On Thursday, I’ll be in the audience as two of our regular FGS tellers are onstage performing here: https://www.meetup.com/auntmamas-new-storytable/events/316548025

Auntmama and Saloni Singh are two of the best tellers in the PNW and you’d be crazy to miss a chance to see them perform. 

There will be music from The Last of the Red Hot Mamas, and stories from award-winning playwright Kathya Alexander and wonderful writer Olubayo Johnson. 

You can read more about Kathya here: https://artisttrust.org/artists/kathya-alexander/

If you still haven’t had your fill of stories, hang out Friday evening with our friends at 7 Stories in Burien: https://www.meetup.com/7-stories/events/316523495. 

The theme this month is Lessons Learned. Have you ever learned a lesson? If not, come out and listen to stories from people who have 🙂

Finally, if you saw Emily Pitts bring the house down at our show last week, you’ll want to catch her full show at the Umbrella Fringe Festival in Kirkland this Saturday. It’s the show she just did this summer at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, except you won’t need a passport or an Uber to SeaTac to see it.

There are a ton of cool acts at the Umbrella Festival next weekend, but Emily will be the coolest. Attendance is limited so get there early.

Umbrella Fringe Festival

That’s all I got. If you told a story at our show Thursday, write me at freshgroundstories@gmail.com if you’d like the audio of it.

I hope you’re all out making dubious decisions and getting a story out of what happened.

Paul

freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Hi Everyone,

I hope you’re getting ready for our show next Thursday. I may have struck a chord with this one since two or three people have already talked to me about stories they’re working on. Good to know I’m not the only one getting knocked sideways by things I never saw coming. Every time it happens, I remind myself that I’m going to get a story out of it. Sometimes, it’s the only thing that makes it ok.

https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories/events/316322393/

In the meantime, here’s a story by our friend Saloni who won a Moth GrandSlam with it. She hinted that she might be joining us Thursday, so this is a perfect time to share it 🙂

When I first discovered The Moth, there were only two places to tell stories in Seattle, and one of those was quarterly. I was lucky to get onstage 2-3 times a year. We are so lucky to have all kinds of story shows to tell at now. Here are some of my favorites that are coming up this month:

Inside Story (TONIGHT at Unexpected Productions) Come out and see a combination of storytelling and improv comedy. Think The Moth + Whose LIne is it Anyway? The Amazing Rebecca Lambert and Nick Vega are in this one so you don’t want to miss it.

Bar Stories Monday 9/14 (Seattle)

https://www.meetup.com/free-monthly-storytelling-meetup/events/316006235/

Bar Stories Wednesday 9/16 (Tacoma)

https://www.meetup.com/free-monthly-storytelling-meetup/events/312966921/

The Artist’s Way Workshop Monday 9/21 (Seattle)

https://www.meetup.com/the-artists-way-accountability/events/316277439

7Stories Friday 9/25 (Burien)

https://www.meetup.com/7-stories/events/316523495/

I’ve told at all of these shows numerous times, and I always have a great time. Check them out if you have a chance. If you can’t make any this month, be sure to join their meetups so you start getting their invites.

That’s all for now. Let me know if you have any questions or you need help on a story. I’m always up for a story call 🙂

Paul

freshgroundgroundstories@gmail.com

I won’t say I love getting blindsided, but I do enjoy the excitement of getting knocked sideways a bit.

I could barely contain myself a few weeks ago when a friend called me to ask if he could hide a bag of guns in my basement. Will I get a story out of that? Probably. It depends on the permission of a few people involved and if they have any active NDA’s.

I remember being blindsided when my son and I took DNA tests and his name didn’t come up in my list of relatives. It took a few weeks of sleuthing and calming down before I realized I could get a story out of that one. 

I just realized today that I could get a story from the time in 2020 when my rent went up 45%. The story would be about how I never wanted the responsibility of owning a house until a mortgage wasn’t going to be much more than rent.

Those are the kinds of stories we’re looking for at the next FGS. We’d love to hear a story where you look back and think, “Well, I didn’t see that coming.” How did you deal with the situation and how did it change you? Did it turn out for the best in the end or do you still wish you could have avoided it?

Of course, our themes are just suggestions, so you can tell a story about almost anything as long as it follows our usual rules and guidelines: https://freshgroundstories.com/2013/01/22/storytelling-rules-and-guidelines/

The easiest way to come up with a story is to start with a moment that meant something to you. Once you have that, write down all the memories that have something to do with that moment, both before and after it. Then choose 2-3 of those memories to be the story.

Remember that a story isn’t just a series of things that happened. There needs to be something at stake that you overcome by the end.

Practice the story out loud to as many people as possible and time yourself when you’re doing it. Please don’t get onstage if you haven’t practiced your story. The audience is giving you their time and attention. It’s not fair to them if you get up there and try to wing it.

All stories have to be under eight minutes. Stories can be as short as you want, but no longer than eight minutes. Stories also have to be clean in both language and content. Send me an email if you have any questions about that.

Our free monthly online workshop is a great place to get feedback on your story.

https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop

I’m also happy to help anyone with a story they’re working on. Email me, and we can set up a phone call.

See you Thursday, September 17 at 7 pm, on the top floor of the Seattle Swedish Club, 1920 Dexter Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109

Paul

Freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Hi Everyone,

I have enough money left over in Mr. Coffee to give away two more memberships to the Swedish Club.

Email me directly at freshgroundstories@gmail.com between now and Friday at 5 pm, and I’ll put your name in the hat to draw a couple more names. 

Paul

freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Thanks to everyone who came out to the show last Thursday. Almost half the audience were first-timers! I love it when I see people discover what personal storytelling is all about. I hope some of them come back and tell their own stories.

Thursday night we had stories about smelly feet, smoke alarms, and what happens when a bully meets his match. We heard about federal mail crimes, why you should never agree to join the board of your co-op, and what happens when a local politician gives you career advice. Stories about art, therapy, and tax preparation also played a role. At the end, we heard a story from a guy who accidentally maced his family.

Where else but a storytelling show could you hear about all those things and have some laughs along the way?

Thanks again to everyone who came out that night. It takes a lot to walk up to that mic, and we couldn’t do it without a kind, supportive audience.

Writer Patti Digh said, “The shortest distance between two people is a story.” When you come to FGS, you know that’s true. My favorite part of every show is seeing people stay after and talk to the tellers. I’ve met some amazing people at FGS and made some great friends.

Our next show is September 17. The theme is “Blindsided.” I’ll get the invite out as soon as I can. Our next free online workshop is Sept 13. You can register for it here: 

https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories-storytelling-workshop/events/315966254

I’m always available to help with stories over the phone. Write me at freshgroundstories@gmail.com to set up a call.

Our friends at 7Stories in Burien are running their show next Friday, the 28th. The theme is “Karma.” You can find out more about telling or attending here:

https://www.meetup.com/7-stories/events/316029256

See you next month!

Paul

freshgroundstories@gmail.com