The Art Of Storytelling - Selecting And Rehearsing Your Story

By Author: Ellie Dixon
Total Articles: 21
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In some communities worldwide there are individuals who are designated as official storytellers for the community. In most societies however, anyone can tell stories, all that's necessary is the teller, the audience and an absorbing story. When telling stories though, every teller must remember that they need to adapt their delivery to their audience. Good storytellers don't simply copy another's style when they're telling stories, they work on developing a very personal style and delivery of their own. They will also develop a collection of stories for different events and will select the right stories for different audiences.

If you have been requested to entertain a group of children - or indeed any group of people with a story, then it is worthwhile undertaking some preparation. When telling stories you need to have an understanding of your audience's needs and expectations. You can only tell stories you know well and know that you can tell with full empathy, emotion and belief. Telling stories is an art form and you will probably discover that a particular form or genre of story suits your style best, in the same ...
... way that painters use particular media or musicians prefer a style of music such as folk, classical or rock. You may decide to tell traditional folk tales, tales from a particular society or country, humorous tales, ghost stories or adventure tales. Whatever genre of story you choose, it must be right for both you, the storyteller, and your audience.

Watch for danger points when telling stories ....

Be aware of your own limitations and don't even try to tell stories well outside your personal experience.

Be wary if choosing stories from another culture, especially if they need a particular dialect, or method of delivery. Unless you are excellent good at impressions, these stories are likely to fall flat and your audience will be disappointed.

Many inexperienced storytellers have decided upon well-known tales as a source of inspiration, and found that some don't work when told aloud. Telling stories aloud is not at all the same as reading them in a book - consider traditional tales like "Three Little Pigs" or "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" - these can be told by anyone, but stories such as A A Milne's "Winnie the Pooh" tales are extremely difficult to share with a big audience. These are stories for a small intimate group of up to, say four maximum, but not with a larger group. When telling stories, why not take a look at some exerpts from "The Hobbit" by J R R Tolkien? This book was designed to be read aloud and is generally successful when recounted to larger audiences.

So, selecting stories for telling is a personal decision. The craft of telling stories varies so much between individuals and audiences and occasions that it's impossible to judge for another which stories will work on a particular day in front of a particular audience.

Visit my website www.scruffysbookshop.com to find some great stories to tell, and a new e-book "How to Tell Stories to Children" to ensure your storytimes are always successful.