Learning to Slam

A Story Slam?  I’d heard of but never attended a Poetry Slam.  What’s a Story Slam?

This definition is from Norah Dooley of massmouth: “Based on a poetry Slam format and similar to American Idol, a story slam is a contest of words by known and undiscovered talent. massmouth posts a theme on its website and story slammers sign up on the night [of the Story Slam] to tell a 5-minute short story on the evening's theme, and a lucky eight to ten names will be drawn at random from a box. Other audience members may feel moved to join in on a judging team. There will be a team of 5 judges - interested amateurs, storytellers, theater people and anyone who loves stories. Each set of 5 stories will begin with a story by a sacrificial teller, usually one of the past winners. Listeners will be engaged in story improv games and other interactive entertainments between each 5 minute feature.

massmouth

Each of the featured 5 minute stories is judged on how well it is told, how well it is constructed and how well the story explores, connects and/or reveals some truth about the theme and, how well it honors the time limit.  The 2 highest-scoring tellers and 1 Audience Choice are awarded prizes. … Prizes will be awarded at each slam.”

 Stories Slams were beginning to work their way into the venue of Storytelling Conferences, when I attended both Sharing the Fire produced by L.A.N.E.S. and the Northlands  Conference produced by the Northlands Storytelling Network.  I watched and listened as my friend, Judith Heineman, prepared her slam story for Sharing the Fire and wondered if I could tell a personal story in five minutes.  At the Northlands Conference, I was invited to be a “Judge-in-Training” which meant sitting with the judges next to Judy Sima so I could ask questions about what she was doing and what the numbers meant.  I learned that you don’t want to be the first contestant.

Set the mic on FIRE

 Also at the Northlands Conference, the audience was invited to participate by telling “Filler Stories,” a one minute anecdotal story on the theme.  Well, I had some of those in my back pocket, but would they fit the theme.  I pondered…  One of the contestants told a story about playing games with her father.  Ah Ha!  That was one I could do!  So I volunteered to tell while the real judges deliberated out in the hall.

Venturing to the stage I began my story of playing Monopoly with my dad almost every weekend in the winter.  It was a dual to the finish with Dad usually winning.  Finally I figured out what his strategy was, tried it; and found it worked.  Then the real battles began.  Many years later, while attending the International Science and Technology Fair with my daughter, I heard a young scientist explain his project: “Winning Monopoly” to the group of assembled students and their adult companions.  It was the same strategy Dad used and I copied – exactly!  Scientific Proof which validated one ten-year-old's creative thinking skills. 

 

I’ve expanded that one minute anecdotal story and am now waiting for another theme to be Right.  Searching through the anecdotes of one’s life can be likened to a Treasure Hunt.  Once the treasure is discovered, it takes building and paring to discover the essential truth of the story.  Both a challenge and a discipline in building a good story.  That, I think, is the pull of Story Slam.

Copyright 2014 Julie Moss Herrera. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Julie Moss Herrera.

 

Dreams Do Come True

          In the spring of 1969 as I filled out applications for teaching jobs, a difficult question for an eager young teacher-to-be to answer, “Where do you see yourself in ten years?” needed a special answer.  I loved my student teaching position.  I hoped I would love my first teaching position.  But where did I see myself in ten years?  Hmmm?

Tilton School 2nd grade



              Thinking long and hard I wrote, “I plan to write a children’s book.  In ten years I see myself as a children’s author.”  That dream did not come true.  For ten years later, I was the mother of a toddler with another baby on the way.  What I had done was tell stories to my second grade classes and obtain my master’s degree with a dual emphasis on library and media.  But still I wanted to write.

Preschool Story Hour

 

My son's birthday party.

           My children grew.  The volunteer task of holding the preschool storytime at our public library was offerd.  It was fun, I told stories, learned finger plays and silly songs.  All the children loved what we did and I became a minor local celeb.  But still I wanted to write.



Telling stories at Ortega Middle School

            My children grew.   They started school, I obtained a position as secondary librarian in a nearby school district.  I taught students how to find information.  We used Billy Joel’s “WeDidn't Start the Fire” as a fun way to start the freshmen on the road to scholarship.  The middle-schoolers learned research through History Fair and Science Fair.  And I introduced storytelling to these students, who loved it.   But still I wanted to write.

            My children grew.   They entered secondary school.  I became the elementary school librarian.  I was back with children’s literature!  I told stories and read the latest new books to children ages four through ten.  And I taught them how to find information.  The internet entered our lives – email, lots of information at our fingertips.  But still I wanted to write.

            My children grew.   They attended the colleges of their choice, graduated and started their own lives.  Now I was working only with the upper grades.  I still told stories and read new books to the students.  We learned research skills by making science booklets for the kindergartners and first graders.  The internet grew more sophisticated.  So the students and I together learned how to sift through the myriads of stuff to find just what we needed.  The principal directed me to help with the gifted and talented program.  My partner and I worked on reading, poetry, math, science, computer skills and storytelling.  The storytellers told their stories to the kindergartners and first graders and learned the joy that comes with sharing a story well-told.  But still I wanted to write.

Telling stories for my grandson's class.



            My children grew.   One started a family of his own; the other traveled around the world.  I retired and was privileged to spend nine months with my grandsons - singing songs, reading books and telling stories.  The oldest had his public debut while singing a story song with me to a group of other children and their parents!  And I was writing!

            Following an NSN sponsored trip to China with other storytellers and my daughter where we collected and shared stories, I began to research the story-gifts we had been given.  I told them and worked those stories into versions of my own.  I wrote the stories down and changed them as they changed with the tellings.  There were workshops about writing and books to read about publishing.  Then, oh then, I was ready to find a publisher.  Query letters went out, and my friend and fellow-traveler, Judith Heineman, introduced me to Ted Parkhurst of Parkhurst Brothers, Inc.  He was interested!  And now, very shortly the finished product will be ready and available.  I did write a book, a book not only for children, but also for storytellers and story-lovers.  My Dream Came True!