It may not always feel like it, but if you’re reading this you’ve probably overcome something you thought you never would. Maybe it was escaping the house you grew up in. Maybe it was getting out from under an addiction. Maybe it was finally getting the career you always wanted after a lifetime of bad jobs. At some point, you looked up and realized what used to be a mountain was now a molehill. 

Hai, one of my childhood friends, came over from Vietnam was he was a kid. I don’t know how he ended up in Alaska but he did and his family took me in when I was 17 and had nowhere to live. I never asked him what it was like leaving his home and having to learn a new language. When you’re young you don’t think about that stuff. One day you just decide you’re friends and you go off and do friend stuff.

A couple days ago Hai posted some photos of himself on Facebook. He just did a one-man show singing Dean Martin songs. How did this kid from Saigon end up in Missouri half a century later onstage doing a Dean Martin tribute show? If he lived here I’d drag him onstage and make him tell that story. I’m sure he’s never told it. After all these years I’d love to hear it.

Next month I’m going back to Alaska to visit my friend David. We’ve been friends since Cub Scouts. We ran away from home together halfway through our senior year of high school. When his mom found out we were hiding in an empty house a few miles away she pounded on the door for what seemed like hours. Boom. Boom. Boom. I’d never felt a house shake like that. We hid upstairs with the lights off as far from any window as we could. It was one of the scariest moments of my life. She’s been dead for 17 years and I can still hear her pounding on that door. I never asked David what that first call to his mom was like when he told her he wasn’t coming back. It took a lot of courage to pick up that phone. Why have I never asked him what that moment was like?

I’d love to hear a story about something you didn’t think you could do and they discovered you could do it. And did do it. And maybe it wasn’t quite as hard as you thought it would be. Yeah, I called this month’s show “mountains into molehills” but it’s ok if you want to tell a story about something that really was a mountain in your life. You should never take my themes too literally 🙂 

Remember to practice your story out loud on 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 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:

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 wonderful storytellers 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.

See you on Thursday, March 21 at 7 pm, 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

7Stories had some tellers cancel due to sickness and need a few more to fill out their show tomorrow night (Friday) in Burien. You can tell a story on any theme you want as long as it follows their usual rules. Click here for more info: https://www.meetup.com/7-stories/events/299082266/

Also, our new friend, Nick who opened our show last week, just sent me links to two new storytelling shows he and his partner Rebecca are running in Seattle. (Naturally, his email came two minutes after I hit send on my own email to everyone). Below is the text he sent me describing the shows.

The first show is called Bar Stories: Live on Stage.

It’s held on the second Monday of each month at Drumlin in Shoreline (in the Ridgecrest neighborhood). 

Sign-up opens at 6:30, show starts at 7.

It’s open to all stories and storytellers. It’s a lot like Fresh Ground Stories, with some Q&A after each story mixed in, and then an invitation for people to come up on the fly if inspiration strikes. The link to our Facebook page is attached here:

https://www.facebook.com/BarStoriesLiveOnStage

They’re also starting a monthly storytelling workshop called Bar Stories: Sunday Salon that Rebecca will host.

The Salon begins on March 17 and will be held thereafter on the third Sunday of each month at Distant World Coffeehouse in Roosevelt (near the corner of 65th Street and Roosevelt Way). It will be an afternoon thing, running from 3-5 pm.

This will be a storytelling show that invites and incorporates feedback, note-taking, mingling, networking, etc. We’re still hammering out the details and will be launching the news this week. The storytelling portion will be about 90 minutes, after which there will be an opportunity for workshopping in small groups, giving feedback, or just casual Sunday mingling.

Contact Nick or Rebecca if you have any questions. 

barstoriesLOS@gmail.com

I love that so many new shows are popping up. Get out of the house and make a new friend. I know, it’s weird making new friends at our age. Try it anyway. The worst that could happen is you go home with a new story.

Paul

What a great night we had! The amp died and two of the recorders came up empty, but we still managed to hear some great stories. Thanks to everyone who came out and leaned in closer while we did a show for the first time ever without a microphone. Yay for good acoustics!

We started off with Nick telling us how he created, lost, and then rebuilt his fake ID empire 20 years ago in NYC. Afterward, we all decided that Idaho is the New Jersey of the PNW. I’ll be driving through there this summer. I might stop in Coeur d’Alene and see how they feel about that.

David was up next and shared a story about deciding to be a dad even though he was scared he’d become the dad that he had. I think a lot of parents have had that fear. I know I did. Turned out I ended up a little like both my parents. Some of it was the good stuff and some of it was the bad stuff. My son comes to the show every month with me and helps me set up so I guess it was at least 51% of the good stuff. I’m still trying to work the bad stuff out of me. David’s kids turned out great. Through all the ups and downs in his story, I was happy to hear that. I hope if there was anyone in the audience wondering about what kind of parents they’re going to be that David’s story showed that you can be exactly the kind of parent you want to be.

Akasha, one of our new regulars, got up and told a story that I wish I didn’t feel so close to. It was a story where the blame for something was laid at everyone else’s feet until she realized her own responsibility. It was the kind of story I love to hear and then hate how much it reminds me of myself. It takes a lot to tell a story where you’re not the hero. Akasha is that kind of storyteller.,

Gretchen threw her name in Mr. Coffee mid-show when she got inspired to tell a story that had just recently happened. Very few people can tell a story without prepping (and I tell people all the time not to do that) but Gretchen has been telling stories for a long time and I knew if she said she could do it then she could. And it was great! I love stories that make me want to immediately get up and do something. Gretchen’s story made me want to eat sushi. I even wanted to go to that vegan sushi place two doors down from the Chabad. Yes, the story was so good she made me want to go eat plant-based sushi. Not sure if that counts as sushi, but one day soon I’ll find out and report back.

Our old friend Brian was next and told the first story we’ve ever heard about the importance of Hee Haw. Hee Haw was a country-western variety show that ran from the 60s through the 90s. It was where a lot of us first saw Roy Clark and a bunch of other world-class country musicians. No one I knew ever admitted to watching Hee Haw but we all did. I know we all watched it because I sang a parody of the show’s iconic song as the opener for the first speech I ever gave in high school. Everyone laughed and outed themselves as Hee Haw watchers. It wouldn’t be the last time I made a room full of people uncomfortable. Anyway, Brian’s story was about much more than Hee Haw. It was also about George Straight’s song, “The Fireman.” And it was about getting lost on a mountain as a young man and realizing no one was going to save him. George Straight and Hee Haw got him through a long, cold night on that mountain. I love it when a teller completely surprises me with things I haven’t thought of in years. Thank you, Brian.

Our only first-timer of the night also got inspired during the show and threw his name in Mr. Coffee mid-show. Don told a story of a squirrel running up his shirt and stealing his Hershey bar. He also set the record for the shortest story ever told at FGS. It was so short that the audience burst into laughter when he suddenly stopped talking and sat down. I think the entire story took 30 seconds. I’ve never laughed at the absurdity of someone telling a 30-second story but I’m so happy Don graced us with that. Everyone in my car laughed again as we drove down Queen Anne Hill on the way home. I hope we see Don again soon. 

My son Taran was up next with a story about being a para-educator and moving from a grade school to a middle school. Yes, maybe I shouldn’t have laughed so loud when he talked about the difficulties of handling teenagers. Yes, maybe I shouldn’t have strongly considered yelling out in the middle of his story, “My how the worm turns, kid!” But how often does a dad get to hear his son complain about unruly boys? If you ever want to know what your loved ones are up to, bring them to FGS. Sooner or later they’ll get up and tell a story you never heard before. And you’ll turn to them on the way home and say, “Did that really happen?”

We closed the show with one of our long-time regulars, Obie who told the beautiful story of traveling through Southeast Asia and realizing the importance of relationships. Whether it’s an intimate relationship with your fiance or a strangely personal relationship with the man you spend hours designing a wedding ring with, they all mean something. They stay in your heart and shape who you become. 

Obie could have been talking about storytelling too. I’ve made more friends than I can count through storytelling, particularly through running FGS. Even if I only see some of those friends a few times a year, they’re still in my heart here in Olympia. You can’t listen to the kind of stories we tell at this show without connecting with someone in that room. I hope each of you heard something you needed to hear that night. I hope that some of you walked up to a teller whose story touched you and said hello. That’s how it all starts.

Our next show is Thursday, March 21. The theme is “Mountains into Molehills – Stories of realizing you’re going to make it.” I can’t wait to hear stories of where you thought you were in over your head and then suddenly everything works out. I’ll get the invite out as soon as I can. 

Our friends at 7Stories have their show this Friday, at the Highline Museum. They have two themes for that night, “Perfect Storm” or “Hot Mess”. I am 100% sure that everyone reading this could tell a story on either of those themes 🙂

https://www.meetup.com/7-stories/events/299082266

Our next monthly online workshop is Sunday, March 3. It’s a great place to get feedback on a story you’re working on for FGS, 7Stories, The Moth, etc. It’s run by two accomplished tellers who love meeting new people. 

https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories-storytelling-workshop/events/299022923

If you miss the workshop, I’m always available to help with stories over the phone. Write me at freshgroundstories at Gmail dot com and we can set up a call.

Take care, everyone. See you in March.

Paul

I hope you’re all looking forward to our show this Thursday, and that some of you are working on a story to tell. I’ve already heard from a couple of people who have stories and I can’t wait to hear them live. You don’t need to contact me if you want to tell a story. Just show up before 7pm and throw your name in the Mr. Coffee carafe.

This month’s theme is “In Retrospect – Stories of things you didn’t want to do but now are glad you did.”

https://www.meetup.com/fresh-ground-stories/events/298764519

A couple weeks ago I saw a storytelling challenge on Matthew Dicks’ Facebook page that piqued my interest. The challenge was to record a short video (4 minutes or less) where you introduced yourself through story. I’d never thought of introducing myself to anyone with a story so I thought I’d give it a try. A week later I found out my 72-second story won!

This is the first time I’ve ever won a storytelling contest. It definitely felt weird knowing that other people lost. But everyone in the contest seemed upbeat and not too upset about it so that made me feel better. The prize for winning was a one-hour coaching session with Matt on Facebook Live where I would learn ways to expand and improve the story. It was a fantastic session. Everything he said made sense and made me want to try the things he suggested. Here’s the link to the coaching session. He plays my story at the beginning so you know what we’re working from. 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/storyworthybusiness/permalink/944494483499405/?mibextid=oMANbw

I’m not in business but I still joined the group a few months ago because I knew at some point I’d learn something about storytelling or coaching. Every month they have a new challenge. This month’s challenge is to use a story to make a toast. I’ll probably try this one too. I may not upload a video and enter the contest but I love trying new storytelling exercises. Here’s the link to the Facebook group. If you have any questions you’ll have to contact Matt through FB. 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/storyworthybusiness

I hope to see you at the show this Thursday!

Paul

Freshgroundstories at Gmail dot com