Thoughts on: Storytelling
From Katherine May to Deesha Philyaw, here are five bits of wisdom on stories and storytelling
Welcome to Thoughts On, a series of bite-sized, soul-nourishing insights from our time’s greatest heart-centered minds. Culled from my interview series, these are the can’t-miss excerpts on storytelling.
1. Use storytelling as resistance.
“Absolutely storytelling is a form of witnessing. We tell stories through many artforms. And right now, our storytelling is more critical than ever for Black folks because the narratives of our lives and our deaths are being distorted, erased, and corrupted. Self-definition is part of what it means to be free. Taking control of the narrative of who we are, all of who we are, is essential. And we’re not just reacting and explaining; we’re creating powerful art in the process. James Baldwin said artists are here to disturb the peace. Toni Cade Bambara said, “As a culture worker who belongs to an oppressed people, my job is to make revolution irresistible.” Revolution and resistance requires us to tell our stories.”
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[read Deesha’s full interview]***
2. Tell personal stories that have universal complexity.
“There's a danger in silencing ourselves. Because of what's going on in the world, writing is so crucial. As Toni Morrison says, it’s how we heal.
This is why I think art that is about the personal is just as important as art that is about the political. We need to tell stories about our individual lives, too, that have some kind of universal complexity to them. People read them and feel less alone. It's important to remind ourselves of that and to not silence ourselves.”
— Michele Filgate [read Michele’s full interview]
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3. Carry the stories of the people you come from.
“I have not only the memories of my dreams, but I also carry the memories of everything that my mother has dreamed about. I know what she dreamt about when she was a little girl, and I know what she dreamt about when she was a teen. So there's something about carrying that history of people that you love that is very different than keeping a memory of waking reality.
When you have that relationship, especially if everyone is discussing the dreams, then there's a sense of communal storytelling. If there's a week where everyone in the family is dreaming about one thing, then you start to see a larger story.
There’s just this delight of knowing stories about the people that you come from… There's something about knowing that and carrying that, that instead of understanding your life as an individual life, you understand yourself as part of this larger story.”
— Ingrid Rojas Contreras [read Ingrid’s full interview]
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4. Collect stories to fuel your writing.
“I eat up the stories other people tell about their lives. I’m not sitting there going, “Oh, I'm going use that in a story” but some tiny corner of that becomes part of something that happens in a book, not in a way that person would even recognize. But if my job is to write about humans in the world, why would I not be constantly filling that gas tank with human experience and interaction?”
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[read Rebecca’s full interview]***
5. Share stories to release shame.
“[Sharing our stories] is a great shame buster. Shame thrives in the dark. The more we share our stories, the more we realize how similar they are. If we can find a way to talk to each other from that space, and also about that space after we've been in it and maybe have a little bit more articulation possible, then we pave the way for the next group of people who are going through it.”
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[read Katherine’s full interview]
Yes! We are all made up of stories. We can do a great service in helping others tell their stories. I hired a teacher (Language Arts) who hung a sign on her door, "The universe is made up of stories" A teacher at the other end of the hall hung a sign, "The universe is made up of atoms" Language arts teacher replied with another sign, "Yes, stories about atoms." This is a tiny story about two storied people, both of whom were outstanding teachers and both of whom told great stories to their students.
I love these beautiful reminders of the importance of stories and storytelling. As I was reading each of the five, I had thoughts of stories from my own life, from my family's history, and from others. Thank you.