I’ve always been fascinated with how stories connect with one another. For most of us who are not natural performers or orators telling a single big story in a compelling way seems daunting. I’ve noticed that most stories are more like snippets; small bits and pieces. Even when they’re not the flow of conversation between people or the impromptu opportunities that present themselves for sharing stories requires us to condense our stories.
Here are some questions I’ve been thinking about:
How do stories change when we need to collapse them?
How much can we condense or abbreviated a story before it loses its impact?
When we link several stories together (two or more in a rapid string)? How does that impact us as a teller? And what effect does it have on listeners? Can they follow us? Will it trigger stories for them?
I’ve been releasing short two minute video blog pieces where I have been experimenting with story richness. I’ve been playing with story forms (anecdotes, metaphors, visual metaphors, cliches, alluding to other personal stories without going into them, and references to well known stories or movies, etc…).
How do these “story forms,” enrich conversations and presentations and when do they detract? Are they still stories? Are these story skills more easily practiced by others because they might mimic natural forms of communication better? Can we be more mindful and aware of these forms of stories and by doing so become more effective at connecting with each other?
In my latest video I gave myself a hard challenge. I wanted to tell three stories in less than a minute and half and still have it be cogent, effective, evocative for others, and well connected to the front part of the video. I then further challenged myself by giving myself one take only. I turned the camera on and away I went. I had a mental schema in my mind and I had identified the stories but I had never tried telling them all together and I had never tried to tell them all in less than a minute and half.
Here’s the result. I’d love to hear people’s experiences and thought about the questions below and I hope the video is a good conversation starter.
Link to Video Example
In case the picture based link does not work here is a text link to the video…
Here’s a link to a library of the videos
Look forward to hearing people’s ideas…
{ 3 comments }
Limor Shiponi • (this is from a thread in another discussion group)
Telling a single big story in a compelling way is always daunting, even if you are a natural performer or orator, even if you are a masterful storyteller. The difference is only in the density of what you call snippets; tellers tell dense snippets but they are all part of one big story. That story exists as a live being in our minds that can wonder back and forth in time, in and out of the story material, swoosh through the narrative and re-scan, re-scan forever, weaving the best plot that will reveal itself only once when the right listener appears. If not this one, another, the doing of story-work is the same, not the teller, nor the listener or story. They are always different, part of one big story.
After landing off the above cloud I think that the snippets you are talking about are the same, only they are fragile, transparent experiments. The people telling them are not always aware at the beginning they are part of a big story. They are molded in conversation and they change bit by bit, the way the speaker wants to see them, or they want to see him. That’s the way they condense and I would not rush the process and for sure would not recommend cutting them short.
That means that managing to collapse a story without losing its essence is something you need to practice, otherwise the story might hang from your lips like an empty bag, shapeless. Stories can be condensed to one sentence and they will still be powerful but do we really need this? What about pace and breathing, I like them better. This is not to say I waste words for the sake of longevity when I tell stories – no. Stories can be too fragile and experimentally transparent, which might be the reason you kicked-off this line of questions in the first place. There is a limit that keeps the impact going.
Linking stories like a string of pearls in not necessary the best policy, I’d rather link them contextually in my mind and tell them in a row – not the same thing. It impacts me by creating a story-space for me to walk in, realizing the big story created and echoed by them all. Telling just a string makes me weary and bored. The listeners hear one big story although they say they realize there were a few, they speak with wonder about how could it be, yes, they can follow us and it triggers stories from them although not immediately. This form elicits phone-calls after not less than 48 hours.
About your videos and the story-forms – there is something about the pace which makes me feel it is too fast. I can grab the experience and enjoy it’s reflections but that is the outcome of living in storytelling most of my days and not the common state of people. Intellectually – they can grab as well as I, I’m not sure about how far inside it echoes, really. Curious to hear from others and from you too.
I don’t grab them as stories, no, they are like flippers on a flipper machine tossing my mind in various unpredicted directions that keep them delightful. More easily practiced? Like writing kōan you mean? Awareness and practice can lead to better connections, I think so.
The first of the three stories fades after the second and third are told. I’d say – find the telling order which creates the one bigger story and it will stand again.
Terrence, I am very interested in your experiment and salute your courage. I watched the video twice and read the comments, so some of what I say are in relation to Limor Shiponi’s responses.
I found the first video interesting, but did not quite get the message, perhaps because the beautiful images tempted me along so many other scenic detours. Or, it could be that I did not consider myself the ‘right listener’ or was subconsciouly aware that I was only a bit player in your ‘big story.’ Or, perhaps it was the ’storytelling voice,’ I don’t know. I think this happens a lot in organisations. People sit down while a video is presented and tune in or out, as necessary, while they wait for the ‘real action.’
I found myself more engaged in the video of you telling the three stories. I got the point about Respect. Perhaps that connects with what Limor said about linking stories contextually. I agree with the idea of pacing. Despite our varying pace in the way we all speak, I think there is the question of reflection. I also agree that stories are molded in conversation and they change bit by bit, and that authenticity is important to me. I have to say though that I really believe each listener will react differently and I do not consider that I have any sort of standard perspective.
BTW, I like what you said about Respect and there is an idea there that I will perhaps mull over for awhile, so thank you for that.
Limor, talk about poetry in storytelling – ’stories that hang from your lips like an empty bag, shapeless’ is brilliant.
Rosemarie,
Thank you for your thoughtful and reflective feedback. Since January I’ve been engaged in playing with this under 3 minute video format looking for the boundaries of effective short burst of digital storytelling.
I have a confession: it’s been really a self indulgent experiment. I’ve been playing with stream of consciousness. The front part of the videos with images are written as “poetic” or stream of consciousness links of associations. I do very little editing of the written script that makeup the front part of the video. I let them roll of my fingers and accept them as they are. It’s an intuitive process for me. As scary as this might sound they are a good reflection of how my mind works. I tend to see and organize thing s around in rapid floods of tightly and loosely coupled associations. I am aware of watching how my mind overlays disparate elements over each other to bring my full body of experience to the moment.
Stories born from a cleaner mold of intention, purpose and structure make it easier to follow. They also make it possible for us to articulate a context that makes sense for us and that can be followed by others. I agree people hook more effectively into stories held together with clear context and purpose. This also gives people the “story space” (in this use of the phrase – kind of like personal space) to hear themselves think and reflect. They get to ruminate because perhaps the stories told in context have a stronger set of triggers and an index that has enough shared components to it that allow other people to enter into the space with us.
As an artist at heart I did not see the two expressions of storytelling in the video as being in competition with one another. I am biased in fact. I am partial to the first form of storytelling. It moves towards a new language and speed of connecting. It mimics the the imagery and flow of our mind. At first there may not be the tempo or ease of entry into the stories as there is when there is clear context but these images and rapid fire of story expressions linger in the mind. Our story mind is stimulated. The hope is that these rapid fire of story snippets and forms are percolating in the minds of listeners. Is it important to have an immediately recognizable story response to someone else’ story in order for it to be effective? Probably depends on the setting, the communication or learning need, etc… SInce this is aform of storytelling not as actively dsicussed in our community of practioners I have been interested in exploring this fronteir to see what I can learn. I am just beginning and stumbling as I go along but thus far it has been an utterly fascinating journey. Since it’s a true sharing video blog I have been less concerned with trying to convey a specific marketable message. I just want to learn and share an authentic part of myself in the process. Thank you for listening and thank you again for such a thoughtful response. I look forward to meeting you at the conference and for all of the rich experiences we will be sharing with each other.
Warm regards,
Terrence
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