The Journal of Applied Communication Research (Volume 37 Issue 2) has devoted its latest issue to Health as Narrative. You can access its articles in a library, or by paying for them, or waiting a month or so till they are available through an academic library database. This new issue … Continue reading
Category Archives: Storytelling and Change
Storytelling Plays Key Role in Many Kinds of Healing and Therapy
Storytelling can help people heal from trauma and more. I’ve come across a convergence of examples recently: This article about narrative therapy is on a site about suicide prevention, though the article doesn’t seem to specifically address that issue. “The protagonist becomes the author and re-writes the story constructively,” writes … Continue reading
Ideological Ghettos: Stories Show the Downside
One of the most fascinating and provocative pieces of writing I’ve read in a long time was the text of a speech given by Leland Maschmeyer at a graphic-design conference at Princeton University. Maschmeyer was the only non-graphic designer to present at the conference. Instead, he’s the director of strategy … Continue reading
Building the Path Forward, Story by Story
As part of my ongoing examination of the value of stories in coping with the current economic crisis, I admired a blog entry by Christina Baldwin, author of Storycatcher. Noting that we are “finally facing the imperative to retool the global economy,” Christina suggests “we can assess what is happening … Continue reading
Religious Storytelling Not Always Steeped in Spirituality
Came across two articles recently about storytelling based on religious traditions. The religions involved are very different — Judaism and Hinduism — as are the purposes in telling these stories. “Rabbi” notes that he (or she) has been asked: “With so many stories why do you mainly tell religious ones?” … Continue reading
Story Fragmentation: Does it Inhibit Storytelling or Merely Change It?
In his Digital Storytelling Cookbook, Joe Lambert talks about today’s “story fragments:” …we are bombarded with millions of indigestible, literally unmemorable, story fragments every time we pick up a phone, bump into a friend, watch TV, listen to the radio, read a book or a newspaper, or browse the Web. … Continue reading
Stories of Transformation — Through the Library
On another site, I saw praise for this site headlined “Is the library transforming your life?” The site collects and publishes stories of all the marvelous benefits of libraries — saving people money, building community, creating a safe haven for youth, and more. Collecting these stories seems to be a … Continue reading
More Support for Storytelling in a Recession
I’ve been writing about sharing stories as a way of understanding and coping with the current economic crisis. Ann Banks understands the value of stories during these tough time. In an article in Newsweek, Banks notes that she was raised on Depression stories. “Hearing them again and again,” she writes, … Continue reading
Guest Entry: Storytelling that Ruins Relationships
Stumbled across this article on a free content site (content4reprint.com). I’m a little wary of the author, Melani Ward (pictured below), as she seems almost “anti-story.” In her Changing Your Story Blog, she calls herself a “storybuster.” To her, that means breaking through stories that keep people (especially women entrepreneurs) … Continue reading
Obama Administration Now Sharing Stories
I’ve blogged about President Obama’s soliciting stories about his election and healthcare stories but complained that the administration did not seem to offer any mechanism to read the stories that were being sought. In contrast, on the topic of the economic crisis, barackobama.com is offering stories. States the site: “Tens … Continue reading