I don’t know how old I was when I realized I was the only one who was going to save me. It might have been 17 or 35 or 46, somewhere around there. It probably involved death or heartbreak because those are the only two things I can’t talk my way out of. I do know that when Life-As-I-Know-It-Is-Over I tend to lay on the ropes for a while like an old boxer waiting for the other guy to get tired and punch himself out. Only when it becomes clear that he’s never going to get tired do I stand up straight and start punching back. 

Whenever the bottom falls out of my life, my initial reaction is always, “This can’t possibly be happening. Somebody’s going to come over and tell me this is a joke.” Of course, no one ever does because it’s always real and it’s never a joke. Lovers leave. People die. Bad things happen and the kids still need to be fed. 

Come tell a story about a time when you had to save yourself. It could be about a time when you were in a plane crash or an emotional crash. Were you trapped on a mountain or trapped in a bad relationship? Maybe you had to talk your way out of a mugging. Or maybe you really were lost at sea and had to swim to shore. Whatever it is, we’d love to hear the story.

If you want to tell a story, remember to practice out loud on as many people as possible and time yourself when you’re doing it. All stories have to be under 8 minutes. Stories also have to be clean in both language and content. The rest of the rules and guidelines are below:

Workshops are a great way to get feedback on a story you’re working on. Here are two I highly recommend:

FGS – Storytelling Workshop

Seattle, WA
695 Storytellers

This workshop helps you become a better storyteller and to prepare to tell stories at events like Fresh Ground Stories or The Moth.The workshop is free.A diverse group of pe…

Next Meetup

June ONLINE Storytelling Workshop

Sunday, Jun 6, 2021, 1:00 PM
12 Attending

Check out this Meetup Group →

Both are run by experienced tellers who have performed many times at FGS. I’m also happy to help with stories. Send me an email at freshgroundstories@gmail.com and we set up a call.

If you want to tell a story at the show, email me as soon as possible so I can get you on the list.

I send out a Zoom registration link to everyone in the Meetup group the Monday before each show. You must register for the show in order to attend. 

After you register, Meetup will send you a link to the actual show. Each link is unique to the person who registered so you won’t be able to share it with anyone. 

Feel free to RSVP on Meetup if you want their automatic reminders, but I’ll be sending the registration link to everyone in the group regardless of your RSVP.

We only have 100 spots in each show so the first 98 people to register for the show will be the only ones who can attend. 

Hope to see a bunch of you on June 17th!

Paul
freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Thank you everyone who came out to the show last Thursday. It was great to have so many people show up to support our tellers. I was especially happy to see some first-timers telling that night. 

This wrap-up will be shorter than usual as I’m under the influence of a wicked mixture of pollen and various over-the-counter allergy meds. It’s almost June so I’m scheduled to spend the next few weeks on my back with a wet rag over my eyes and blowing my nose hard enough to start the neighbor dogs barking.

Luckily, the good folks at MerckoPfizerSquibbJohnson have given me a wide range of narcobenzoflamitoids to choose from. If it ends in -tec, -vert, -tin, or -dryl I probably have it in me right now. I don’t know what the active ingredients are in any of these but I’m probably flammable. 

I do want to share a couple things before I go back under the rag.

First, Silvana sent me a photo of Randy the man-eating rooster in his johnny jump-up. Thank you, Silvana! I posted it on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/freshgroundstories

Second, Colleen shared a story that night about taking control of her life and how she started giving herself the love and attention that until then she’d been giving to others. The next day a friend of mine wrote to tell me that it was exactly the story she needed to hear right now in her life. 

Our stories are gifts. Not because they contain advice, but because they let others know they’re not alone. The world doesn’t need more opinions but it does need more people sharing what we’ve lived through. Thank you, Colleen, for your gift that night. A woman you’ve never met really needed it.

Ok, one more thank you to my son, Taran. Thank you for making your old man proud. You told a great story. I’m still thinking about it a week later.

Big thanks to all the tellers that night: Behnaz, Carmen, Colleen, Liz, Melody, Randi, Emily, Connie, Silvana, Taran, and Dave.

Don’t forget to take our one-question survey on how comfortable you’d be coming to see an FGS show in person. If I get enough people who want to come I’ll bring the show back to our favorite coffee shop on July 15.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MMN59SG

Our next Zoom show is June 17. The theme is, “Swimming to Share – Stories of saving yourself.” I’ll get the invite out as soon as I can see straight. Email me if you have any questions, freshgroundstories at gmail dot com (I gotta spell it this way ‘cos Meetup will hide it if I don’t).

Check out the two great workshops we partner with. They’re super helpful if you need help on a story.

FGS – Storytelling Workshop

Seattle, WA
694 Storytellers

This workshop helps you become a better storyteller and to prepare to tell stories at events like Fresh Ground Stories or The Moth.The workshop is free.A diverse group of pe…

Next Meetup

June ONLINE Storytelling Workshop

Sunday, Jun 6, 2021, 1:00 PM
10 Attending

Check out this Meetup Group →

Have a great week 🙂

Paul