Storytelling is a staple of human existence. In the past, it served as history lessons and a way to keep tradition. Today, it’s used for just about the same reason, except now we have means of archiving these stories.
In a world that’s so technologically dependent, it’s refreshing to take a tech break and listen to these stories. Ironically, though, one can get to all of them via the Internet. I’m not talking about a Ted Talk, which is like storytelling, but more focused on a thesis and research of some sort.
The Moth is an organization that allows storytellers to take the stage and do what they do best: craft mundane, everyday life events into spellbinding stories.
Created in 1997 by George Dawes Green after simply telling stories with friends in his living room, The Moth has featured thousands of stories—both from well-known writers, poets and speakers to the average Joe who has a knack for the art.
The amazing thing about the stories featured is that, most of the time, they are normal life occurrences. It’s not necessarily about the time that they won the lottery, but instead how befriending the older cousin that everyone had written off really paid off in the end (that one is “Cousin Norman,” and it’s great).
There are different levels to The Moth’s storytelling. The first is the monthly StorySLAM, where aspiring storytellers in major cities pitch their stories, based on the night’s theme to the judges. From there, the judges sift through the different pitches and choose a few that will go on to be performed in front of a live audience.
The next level is being featured on The Moth’s website. In the same way that the StorySLAMs work, you pitch your story (via a record button on the organization’s website), and they choose the stories that will go on to be featured.
The last level of “Mothdom” is the radio one hour feature, arguably the ultimate goal for a storyteller. These are the stories that get recorded and played on the 200 plus radio stations across the country. These stories air weekly, rather than monthly, making the odds seemingly higher for potential performers to get their shot.
Not only is it fun to listen to all of these stories, but it forces you to think about your own daily life and what could constitute as your own Moth story.
As someone who isn’t very good at writing elaborate or engaging fiction, thinking of everyday life happenings in terms of a story that would wow an audience is a great exercise for spreading those storytelling wings of mine.
So tune in, listen to a few stories, and see if you’re ready to tell your own. The Moth plays weekly on NPR, and past and recent stories are all archived at www.themoth.org.
