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This wonderful video is an 18-minute talk by novelist Isabel Allende, in which — with humor, poignancy, and power — she tells stories of passion — women with passion — and how feminine energy can change the world.

The talk was part of “TED,” Technology, Entertainment, Design, which “started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from those three worlds. Since then its scope has become ever broader. The annual conference now brings together the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives (in 18 minutes).”

Ever feel frustrated at a conference because so many sessions were concurrent, and you couldn’t attend them all?

Laura Fitton had some good advice on the subject in the blog of Pistachio Consulting.

She noted that it’s almost as good to hear stories about missed sessions, socially mediated though those stories may be, as to attend them yourself.

“By seeking out what my friends noticed and took away from the experience,” Fitton writes, “I’m extending the depth and breadth of being there… make it a priority to engage and exchange stories with others…”

Jon Greer’s reflections (in his blog, Catching Flack) on a recent media-relations summit emphasize the pervasiveness of the summit’s message that public-relations practitioners need to be doing more storytelling:

Time and again during the conference, the need for becoming better and more agile storytellers came up as the essential tool for PR professionals.

Greer offers these tips for creating better stories:

• The element of time: stories need a beginning, middle and end, and that usually involves the element of time.
• Challenges overcome: we all want to know how each other is faring in the world, so good stories include trials and tribulations. Victory laps aren’t nearly as interesting.
• Detail, detail, detail: this can be a double-edged sword, because often we issue news chock-full of detail, but it’s the wrong kind. Product specs, for instance, aren’t interesting details that tell a story. Details that support storytelling elements such as risks taken (how much money is at stake) and people involved (team members, not spokespeople or top execs) are examples of interesting details
• Novelty: good stories tell us something we didn’t already know or thought we knew. So again, your new product may be a big deal to you, but new products are released everyday. Dig a little deeper to find something truly novel about your product (how or why it was developed, risks taken, challenges overcome) and I guarantee you’ll get more coverage and interest.

The cool thing about focusing on storytelling is that it is platform-neutral, meaning you can tell stories in any setting, whether it’s print media, podcasts, speeches or anything in between

Greer also noted that conference attendees weren’t very interested in sessions presented by the mainstream media but were quite attracted to sessions about new media and social media.

What is locative storytelling? asks the FAQ at LoJoConnect. And the response:

Using the bouquet of emerging mobile and location-based technologies (from GPS-enabled mobile phones to interactive online maps), locative storytelling provides multi-media content that enhances a user’s connection to a given place. At its best, this kind of interactive media gives users increased entry points, and more control over, any given story, thereby enabling deeper and more vibrant experiences.

Shorthand for locative journalism, LoJo is the name of a project launched by a team of Northwestern University graduate students to study the intersection of journalism and emerging location-based technologies. Through this project, we hope to create interactive and informative mobile experiences that push innovation in journalism.

What are some examples?

If you’ve ever been on an audio tour of a museum or a city neighborhood, you’ve experienced locative storytelling. Other examples include Google mash-ups (user-enhanced Google maps that layer location-specific information over area maps) and GPS-based mobile games.

Locative Storytelling has garnered considerable attention in the blogosphere because of Penguin Books’ We Tell Stories project, particularly the story, “The 21 Steps,” which “is told by following the story as it unfolds across a [Google] map of the world. [Readers] follow the trail by clicking on the link at the bottom of each bubble.”

Nice description of storytellers at the School of Storytelling at Emerson College in the UK:

A storyteller is more than just a teller of stories. Storytellers are entertainers, teachers and healers with a long spiritual tradition. Their creative work often focuses on strengthening the communities in which they live. Drawing on the richness of the oral tradition, storytellers are bridge builders that connect us to other people, to ourselves, and to the invisible world of the imagination.

Recently came across the site Overheard Everywhere, which seems to consist of bits of overheard conversations with funny headlines.

Example of overheard snippet:

Student at table: Yeah, so, I finally found out what was dead in my basement.

It occurred to me that it would be fun to imagine these conversations as punchlines, beginnings, or other parts of stories. Try going to Overheard Everywhere and see what stories the overheard bits inspire.

Mary Robinette Kowal recently described an interesting storytelling phenomenon that happened to her.

She read one of her unfinished stories to a group of people she knew. She got to the place where the story ended (without ending) and the audience wanted to know …

But what happens next?!?!”

I glanced at all the sharp instruments they had in their hands, decided that my life was in danger, and told them the rest of the story. My word-smithery went out the window pretty fast leaving me with voice to convey mood and then… the rest was all about the plot. What happened next.

I knew basically what I wanted to have happen, but I hadn’t worked out any of the details yet. Having a live audience listening to me as I found my way through the rest of the plot points showed me exactly which things were interesting and which weren’t. (The car chase is right out.) If they had a question, I could stop for exposition, (See, the Faerie Queen knew there was a traitor, she just didn’t know who) while making a mental note that I needed to plant that piece of information earlier when actually writing it.

When I got out of there, I sat down with the keyboard and the words fairly flew out of me. I still have a couple of thousand words to go, but I know exactly what happens next.

Interesting idea for writers — try telling the unfinished part of your story and see how the telling affects your writing.