The other day someone at work asked me what kind of stories I tell. I didn’t know how to answer them. I mumbled something about telling true stories about stuff I’ve lived through but I was upset that I couldn’t explain it any better than that. For the number of times I’ve been asked this question I really should have a good answer by now.

If there are any career coaches reading this, they will say this is very poor marketing. You should always have an elevator speech ready to launch at anyone who expresses even a passing interest in what you do. Luckily, I have no desire to turn storytelling into a career. But I would like to be able to explain to people what kind of stories I write without having to tell one.

Tonight on the couch, I think I finally figured it out. I tell stories where my voice drops at the end because I’m about to reveal something I should have figured out a long time ago. It’s usually uncomfortably honest and something that only makes sense telling either your best friend or a room full of strangers. At the beginning of my stories, I’m usually embarrassed by what I’m about to say. By the end of my stories, I’m grateful there are people out there who are willing to listen.

And that’s the kind of story we’re looking for next month on November 21. Come tell a story where you learned something about yourself. It could be a story where you learned you were stronger than you thought you were or weaker than you thought you were. Is there a time where you discovered your true colors? Are you a cynic who deep down keeps a little flame of hope alive? Maybe you were a minister for 20 years until the day you realized you’re an atheist. Maybe you have a story about graduating with a degree in accounting and then realizing you really wanted to be an opera singer. Please, someone, have a story about that! I would love to end the show with someone singing an aria from Rigoletto 🙂

Remember to keep it clean, and practice out loud as often as you can. All stories must be under 8 minutes. It can be as short as you want but not over 8 minutes. We’re getting more names in Mr. Coffee and some folks aren’t getting to share their story because we run out of time. Thanks for understanding.

Here are the rules and guidelines for telling: https://freshgroundstories.com/2013/01/22/storytelling-rules-and-guidelines/

If you’d like help with your story, our next free monthly workshop is Nov 3. It’s run by two of our regular tellers who volunteer their time. You can RSVP here: https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop/events/26

I hope to see you all November 21 at 7 pm at the Olive Way Starbucks

Paul
freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Thanks to everyone who came out and supported all our tellers last Thursday. We had old friends drop by to share new stories and new friends come by to share old stories. It was a joy for me to host.

Sometimes, the best stories are the ones that leave us wanting to know more. Thursday’s show was filled with stories like that. For instance, what did the dominatrix whisper to David as she sat in the back seat of his Uber? How did she know just what to say to make him so uncomfortable?! And how in the world does she make $400,000/year humiliating men over the internet while never taking her clothes off? More importantly, how can the rest of us get in on this? 

Bruce told a story that left me wondering if the father of his sweetheart from 51 years ago was an executive for Arrow shirts or a CIA field operative in Africa? Did they really just barely escape from an uprising in the Belgian Congo or was that just a cover story from something more nefarious? Sabra, a first-timer, told us about joining a Korean martial arts cult and what it took to finally leave. On the way home I realized I never found out what martial art they taught. Taekwondo? Hapkido? Tang Soo Do? Hwa Rang Do? Can you tell that I read Black Belt magazine religiously as a kid? I still remember all those names.

Paul, our second first-timer, told the story of escaping from communist Poland and what it was like to leave his family behind. I really wanted to sit down with Paul after the show and learn what it was like growing up in a place like that. Based on the purple shoes he was wearing that night, it looks like he’s completely embraced America.

One of our regulars, Renata, told a story about divorcing her first husband of 35 years and how it led to going on 80 online dates before finding the true man of her dreams…who she then revealed to the audience was Paul from Poland! Surprise! Yes, I secretly planned that. I asked Renata weeks ago to share that story and when she told me a few days ago that Paul was working on his own story I asked her to surprise the audience with the last-minute reveal. Paul from Poland was date #80. If you’d like to know more about dates 1-79 you can read the book she wrote called, “Around Seattle in 80 Dates.”

https://www.amazon.com/Around-Seattle-80-Dates-Journey/dp/1985371871/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=renata+lubinsky&qid=1571517320&sr=8-1

There are many more stories from that night I could go on about but I’ll let you get back to your lives. Big thanks to all the tellers who walked up to the microphone that night. I say every night at the start of each show, “Opinions separate us, and stories bring us together.” Thank you for bringing us all together that night.

Our next show is November 21. The theme is “Discovering something about yourself.” I’ll get the official invite out as soon as I can.

If you’re looking for help on a story, our next free monthly workshop is Nov 3. It’s run by two of our regular tellers who volunteer their time. Thank you, Dave and Chad! You can RSVP here: https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop/events/265468750/

Hope to see a bunch of you on the 21st 🙂

Paulfreshgroundstories@gmail.com

 

Hi All,

I hope to see a bunch of you at the show this Thursday.
https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories/events/265221096/

I also want to let you know about two proud FGS moments.

First, Susan Fee, one of our regular tellers, will be on The Moth podcast this Saturday (KUOW 94.9 at 1:00 pm). I think Susan is the second teller from FGS to be on The Moth. 

Second, Melissa Reaves, another FGS regular, just had her Ignite Seattle talk uploaded so everyone can see it. She told part of this story at FGS earlier this summer. Ignite Seattle is a great place to take the skills you learn from storytelling and use them to share ideas and experiences that need to be heard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-ugdFgdAKc

I hope everyone is having a good week. See you Thursday!

Paul
freshgroundstories@gmail.com

Hi All,

Just a quick email to let you know about some of the great things FGS tellers are up to this week.

1. Two amazing women who have told at FGS are giving talks at Ignite Seattle this Thursday. Mary Purdy and Melissa Reaves will add their names to the list of other FGS tellers who have given talks there (Bill Bernat, Ginger Chien, Susan Fee). Click here to get tickets: https://igniteseattle.com/
2. Susan Fee’s story about the mysterious Seattle bus driver known only as Care Bear Bonnie was was re-aired last week on KNKX’s Sound Effect. Catch it here if you want to hear the surprise ending that occurred in the studio during the recording: https://www.knkx.org/post/connection-sound-effect-episode-190
3. The free FGS storytelling workshop is coming up this Sunday. It’s run by two of our regular tellers who donate their time and energy once a month to help others learn how to craft personal stories. It’s a great place to get gentle feedback on a story you’re working on. Click here for more info: https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop/events/264527648/

Hope everyone is having a great week 🙂

Paul
freshgroundstories@gmail.com

 

I’ve run away from a lot of things in my life but I haven’t walked away from many. I guess that means I usually wait until it’s too late to exit gracefully. By the time I decide to leave a job, a town, a relationship, a belief system, it’s almost always long after I should have.

The few times I have walked away from something it’s often with a look over my shoulder and a feeling that maybe for once my timing is right. It’s a pretty rare feeling for me but I hope it’s not for you. This month, we’re looking for stories of walking away and moving on. You might have left a person, a job, a place, old convictions, almost anything. We’ve all left something or somebody sometime. Why did you leave? Was it a quiet so long or a cataclysmic goodbye? Maybe you even went back later on. Was it different the second time around? We’d love to hear the story.

Remember to keep it clean, and practice out loud as often as you can. All stories must be under 8 minutes. It can be as short as you want but not over 8 minutes. We’re getting more names in Mr. Coffee and some folks aren’t getting to share their story because we run out of time. Thanks for understanding.

Here are the rules and guidelines for telling: https://freshgroundstories.com/2013/01/22/storytelling-rules-and-guidelines/

I hope to see you all October 17th at 7 pm at the Olive Way Starbucks Feel free to email me if you have any questions

Paul
freshgroundstories@gmail.com