Story Telling Etiquette

When a person is telling a story, be respectful and listen to the story. By being respectful and listening to the story, you give yourself the opportunity to honor your storyteller by retelling the story accurately. Long before television, storytelling was an oral tradition. Stories that a storyteller narrates belong to them--they are copyrighted. A story doesn't have to be written on paper or some other medium to be copyrighted. Another storyteller cannot take a story told to them by someone else and make their original story their own. A good rule of thumb: if the storyteller is alive, attribute to him or her or add special twists to make it your own. If the source of the story has passed away or the story has been handed down through the generations, it is in the public domain--still attribute when known.

• Storytelling FAQ and Etiquette

• The U.S. Copyright Act

• How to Teach Storytelling and Etiquette

List of Best Stories to Tell

Folktales elicit human emotion, drama, and tend to be short with a message to learn. Many folktales lie in the public domain and therefore are not copyrightable, as they have likely changed over generations and the original storyteller has died. Folktales tend to be easily remembered and easy to add your own story flair to. Campfire and ghost stories are also easy to tell. You can make them up as you go along to suit your situation and your audience.

• Business Storytelling

• Exploring Stories

• Collaborative Stories for Children

• Step-by-Step Oral History

Storytelling Techniques

Narration is simply telling a story. How you narrate depends on the age of your audience. Preschoolers need storytelling with imaginative presentation, bold gestures, and eye contact to keep their attention. Older kids prefer interaction and stories that they can relate to. Be creative even if telling stories to an adult audience. That's the key to finding good stories to tell: knowing your audience and your venue. Fables, folktales, and other short stories are easily found online or through your local library system.

• Beginner's Storytelling

• Best Storytelling Practices

• Storytelling Tools

Storytelling Resources

Storytelling is a wonderful resource for teaching purposes whether at home, at a business meeting or at church. Refrain from preaching, no matter what venue, as your audience is more likely to respond to animated storytelling that allows them to draw from it what touches their lives. This is especially important in a church setting. Show, don't tell, don't preach, your story for maximum effect .

• Storytelling for 21st Century Business

• Folktales for the Classroom

• Storytelling Links

• Storytelling Coaching Manual

• Stories for Children with Presentation Suggestions

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