-->Woolgathering: 1. 5 Begin again
by Norah Dooley
Theory and Practice for Storytelling as a 21st Century Skill
Starting our story from a different perspective can help us see new aspects of our experience or a story's structure or it's deeper meaning. We want our story to get better and better with repeated telling. And usually a story will, if we listen to ourselves as we tell. And revise our work. A fun way to accelerate the process of refining a story through retelling is to try some new beginnings.
Exercises 1.5: Begin Again
Beginnings: start again Try a new beginning for your story:
1. Start
with a sound, a sight, a smell or a taste that describes the place
2. Start
with a sound, a sight, a smell or a taste that describes a character
3. Start
with a sound, a sight, a smell or a taste that describes the time
4. Start
describing some action – major or minor – that shows setting
5. Start
a dialogue between 2 main characters.
6. Write
the inner monologue (thoughts) of a main character.
7. Make
—a statement … you might begin with a sentence that starts with—“Usually...” or
“They say... “ All X are Y or so I thought but/and...” or “She always believed
that...” you get the idea?
8. Ask
a question – rhetorical, of your self - of the audience -
