Hi Everyone,

I went out last weekend and got a touch of the Covid so I’m going to have to push our May show out to June 15. We’ll keep the same theme so anyone who was planning on telling this Thursday can use the same story in June.

I’ll change the date of the show in Meetup in a few minutes so look for that update in your inbox. The upside is that now you have another chance to bring a story or even just a story idea to our wonderful, free, monthly workshop on June 4 🙂
https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories-storytelling-workshop/events/293413794/

You could also check out the amazing science storytellers at The Story Collider on May 25th (co-hosted by Kent Whipple and featuring Susan Fee who just told with us last month)
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-story-collider-seattle-tickets-617337672597

Or you could go to a Moth storyslam on the 19th!
https://themoth.org/

I should be back on my feet in a couple weeks and have time to help anyone on a story over the phone. I’ve also started helping people with their stories at my favorite Tacoma teahouse, Mad Hat Tea

https://madhattea.com – I don’t get tea kickback from them. I just like hanging out there.

Hope you’re week is Covid-free!

See you in June on the 15th.

Paul
freshgroundstories at gmail dot com

Hi Everyone,

Sorry I didn’t get the thank you/wrap-up message out this month. I’m hip-deep in a big video storytelling project that I’m spending 12-hour days on. It’s gratifying but exhausting.

But I’ll be ready for our show next Thursday! The theme is “Escape – Stories of breaking free.”

https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories/events/293224246/

I also want to share two events with you. The first is a storytelling event called “Community Speaks: Frames of Mind”. It’s a mental health show from the South Asian community. One of the people facilitating the event is Abhishek Kulkarni, a man I met when I hosted NAMI’s Brainpower Chronicles last year. He’s a wonderful storyteller and will be sharing stories with us at FGS soon.

Community Speaks 2023

The other event is 7 Stories in Burien. We’ve had a number of FGS folks tell at this show and you’ve seen 7 Stories people tell at our show. Their next show is Friday, May 26 at 7pm. The theme is “Disconnecting. Unplugging. Uncoupling.”

Email them at 7stories@burienculturehub.org for more info.

https://burienculturehub.org/7stories

I hope you’re all having a great week. I’m off to Spokane for a few days to record more people sharing stories of their lives. I wouldn’t have gotten this opportunity if someone hadn’t come to our show, seen what we do, and asked me to be a part of it. So keep telling stories and asking others to share theirs. It can lead you to great places.

See you on the 18th!

Paul

Freshgroundstories at gmail dot com

When I was a kid there were two things I wanted to escape from, my family and Alaska. I broke free from my family at 17 but it wasn’t until I was 19 that I managed to escape Alaska and go to LA, chasing the ghost of my mother. In one way I was escaping the place I grew up, but in another way I was escaping the shy, timid kid everyone thought I was and trying to become the person I thought I might be.I told this story at FGS a few years ago so I won’t take up your time repeating here. What I’d love to hear now are stories from you about a time when you broke free. 

Come tell a story about a time when you escaped from something. It could have been a place, a relationship, a state of mind. Maybe you escaped from a burning building or an overturned car. Or maybe what you escaped from was your past. Remember, we’re not here to badmouth people or places in our lives. This is a chance to focus on what you became, where you ended up, and what you learned along the way.

Come tell a story about a time you broke free. Remember to practice your story 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 can be as short as you want but not over 8 minutes. Stories also have to be clean in both language and content. Send me an email if you have any questions about that.

The rest of the rules and guidelines are below:

https://freshgroundstories.com/2013/01/22/storytelling-rules-and-guidelines/

Workshops are a great way to get feedback on a story you’re working on. Here is one I highly recommend. It’s run by two people who have told many times at FGS and other shows in the area:  https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop/

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

Unfortunately, we’re not able to keep the doors open past 7 pm so if you come after that you probably won’t be able to get in.

See you on Thursday, May 18 at the Chabad of Queen Anne – Magnolia! 1825 Queen Anne Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109 (Remember, no non-kosher food in the building)

Paul

Freshgroundstories at gmail dot com