About us
Meet other storytellers and all those who enjoy the art of personal storytelling. Inspired by The Moth, we get together at 7 pm on the third Thursday of each month on the top floor of the Seattle Swedish Club to share true stories about our lives that somehow changed how we saw ourselves or the world around us.
If you're curious, you are free to come to the show whether you're a Meetup member or not. Visit our Rules and Guidelines page to see what you'll need to do to tell a story. Join the group if you'd like to receive the monthly invites.
Email me if you have any questions.
Upcoming events
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FGS: Stories of someone surprising you
Swedish Cultural Center, 1920 Dexter Ave N., Seattle, WA, USJust when I think I have someone figured out, they surprise me. Most of the time it’s a beautiful reminder that I’m not in charge of the world and that there’s more sweetness in the world than I think there is. An unexpected apology, a kiss on a first date, a compliment from someone I didn’t think was listening. All good things that make me look forward to life.
Some things are just weird and make me wonder if I’ve been paying attention. My son coming home with a shaved head. Overhearing people at work hating on someone I like.
And then there are the ones that you swore would never happen. My brother and I started talking to each other after years of silence. An old friend and I stopped talking to each other. Maybe one day we’ll surprise each other and start again.
Every one of these moments could be a story. The easiest way to come up with a story is to start with a moment that meant something to you. Once you have that, write down all the memories that have something to do with that moment, both before and after it. Then choose 2-3 of those memories to be the story.
Come tell us about a time when someone surprised you. Try to focus on a person rather than a thing. Unless you were hit by lightning. I would love to hear a story about being hit by lightning. But generally, a story about a person who surprised you will reveal more about yourself than a thing that surprised you. Of course, our themes are just suggestions, so you can tell a story about almost anything as long as it follows our usual rules and guidelines.
https://freshgroundstories.com/2013/01/22/storytelling-rules-and-guidelines/Whatever the story, we'd love to hear it. Remember that a story isn't just a series of things that happened. There needs to be something at stake that you overcome by the end.
Practice the story out loud to as many people as possible and time yourself when you’re doing it. Please don’t get onstage if you haven’t practiced your story. The audience is giving you their time and attention. It’s not fair to them if you get up there and try to wing it.
All stories have to be under eight minutes. Stories can be as short as you want, but no longer than eight minutes. Stories also have to be clean in both language and content. Send me an email if you have any questions about that.
Our free monthly online workshop is a great place to get feedback on your story.
https://www.meetup.com/Fresh-Ground-Stories-Storytelling-Workshop/I’m also happy to help anyone with a story they’re working on. Email me, and we can set up a phone call.
See you Thursday, June 18 at 7 pm on the top floor of the Seattle Swedish Club, 1920 Dexter Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109
Paul
Freshgroundstories@gmail.com12 attendees
Past events
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