\u2022 One of the frustrations of writing is that you never arrive. If you\u2019re good, you\u2019re never good enough. Students keep asking me: \u201cHow do you know you\u2019re a good writer?\u201d You never do. Bad news but also good news. It means you can always get better.<\/p>\n \u2022 Writing is construction \u2013 with ideas and words instead of wood and fabric. Lots of people believe writing is magic. It can be magical. Done well it may be the most magical thing in the world. But the practice of it is not magic. It\u2019s work. If you know the mechanics and have the right tools in your toolbox, you can call on the muse.<\/p>\n \u2022 Character. Scenes. Telling details. Those close shots that bring the readers\u2019 eyes into the story and puts them in the moment. The more you look for them, the more you can elevate your work. Action. Theme and meaning. That\u2019s your raw material.<\/p>\n \u2022 Character. Make it as specific as possible. You want to bring all of a person\u2019s unique traits to the forefront \u2013 but in a way people can relate to.<\/p>\n \u2022 Scenes and telling details. Think of your notebook as a camera. Think cinematically. Close-up shots: zoom in tightly to signal something is important. Zoom out for context. Pan for movement.<\/p>\n \u2022 Little tiny details make all the difference. You have to hunt for these details \u2013 you\u2019re the miner out there.<\/p>\n \u2022 Use scenes that not only put people in place but help them understand a deeper emotion. Scenes that, instead of telling you whats going on, show you.<\/p>\n \u2022 Structure is what affects writers most. The more complex the story, the simpler the structure. The simpler the structure, the more you can be creative. Look for structures in music, haikus and poetry, Facebook posts and tweets, maps. Once you know how to build the house and what\u2019s its the purpose, you can decide how to decorate, what furniture to bring in. Find a foundation that serves your story.<\/p>\n \u2022 Listen to stories because they will tell you how they want to be told.<\/p>\n \u2022 The most important tool in your tool box is belief. You have to believe you can do this. Believe that the work matters. That writing and communicating is as fundamental to us human beings as anything else in the world.<\/p>\n Drago\u0219 Bucurenci <\/strong>talked about the stories we tell about other people \u2013 why some they get to stick, and why we should pay attention to the narratives we project into the world.<\/p>\n \u2022 Religion, politics, show biz \u2013 what they all have in common is idols. All are based on stories about exceptional people, gone viral.<\/p>\n \u2022 Why does a story survive? Because it confirms previous stories. It fits the picture. Stories that confirm previous stories stick with us.<\/p>\n \u2022 Beware of stories. While they can build you in the minds of people, they can also destroy what you\u2019ve built.<\/p>\n \u2022 Beware of stories. Reality is not neatly structured. Stories are a work of the mind. Beware of looking at the world as if looking at a story.<\/p>\n Starlee Kine <\/strong>used her \u201cdetective\u201d work and solving real life mysteries for the Mystery Show<\/em><\/span><\/a> podcast, in order to make a case for the power of stories to create human connection.<\/p>\n \u2022 There are different kinds of stories: some where the stakes are obvious, and these little crums that populate our lives. In order to find a compelling character, look for the people who are really excited about something.<\/p>\n \u2022 People are natural storytellers when they talk about something they know. Get out of the way. A story is happening, don\u2019t try to insert yourself.<\/p>\n \u2022 The thing about a good story is texture. You\u2019re not just laying out information, you\u2019re creating a feeling.<\/p>\n \u2022 You can capture human connection forming in real time. Moments that feel comfortable and natural and real.<\/p>\n \u2022 There\u2019s a power in knowing what you\u2019re after. Ask about this legitimate thing you\u2019re wondering about. Ask something that you actually want to know about a person. That\u2019s how you create connection.<\/p>\n Alex G<\/strong>\u00e2lmeanu <\/strong>grounded his talk in a compressed evolution of photography \u2013 from images that needed 24 hours exposure, to the first portable cameras, to the clutter of lenses, cables and accessories, and eventually to this day\u2019s omnipotent smartphone. Technological barriers have been overcome: \u201cToday, with the technology we have at hand, any kid can take a beautifully lit picture.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022 So what is a photographer to do, in these times when anyone can be not only a producer but also a distributor of visual content?<\/p>\n \u2022\u201eWhat makes an object be an art object? Not the medium, or the craftsmanship, or the effort \u2013 it\u2019s the idea.\u201d In a time when photography is more democratic than ever before, \u201eI choose to think.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2022\u201eThe modern photographer is the one who can bring ideas into the world. It\u2019s never just about photography, it\u2019s about life.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris Jones <\/strong>offered a perfect ending to this year\u2019s The Power of Storytelling journey, with nine rules and a substantial dose of humor, wisdom, and inspiration for anyone doing creative work. Or, as he defined it: \u201eThe work that puts life where life hasn\u2019t been before.\u201d<\/p>\n As with building a car, there are the laws of physics, there are parts you have to use. You need to know the rules so you can break them \u2013 and some you have to keep.<\/p>\n The thing you love, the thing you want to be \u2013 you have to look into everything that has been that before you. You have to consume everything \u2013 it teaches you what\u2019s possible, and what\u2019s not. Take the things you love the most, keep them, make them talismans. They\u2019re the star in the sky you\u2019re guided by.<\/p>\n You need to find the process that works for you. The problem with being creative is there are moments when it works better than others. Find the time and place that give you the best chance to be in that zone.<\/p>\n Any good creative person I know is discplined. Dedicating time to write, dedicating time to read. It\u2019s work. It\u2019s labour. You have to be single minded about what you\u2019re doing. Clean your place, sit down, do the work.<\/p>\n Quoting a friend: \u201cAll creative advice, all writing advice, can be summed up in three words: ASS IN CHAIR.\u201d<\/p>\n Teller, the magician, once told me: \u201cSometimes magic is just someone spending more time on something than any one else may reasonably expect.\u201d<\/p>\n If you\u2019re not doing it because of something inside your chest, you won\u2019t be driven enough, you won\u2019t be obsessive enough, you won\u2019t put in enough time.<\/p>\n It will rarely meet your expectations from yourself. You will hardly be satisfied. Creating something is not math. There isn\u2019t necessarily a right answer, you can always keep working, tweak a sentence.<\/p>\n Good work doesn\u2019t always win. It wins for you \u2013 you know when you did something good. But if you put your hope into how other people will react, it will hurt.<\/p>\n There will be nights when you will feel completely by yourself. It\u2019s quiet work. Sometimes you feel crazy, wondering: Why do I care so much about this thing? Doubt, criticizm creeping in \u2013 that\u2019s when it\u2019s good to be alone.<\/p>\n You\u2019re gonna do it. You got this. It\u2019s gonna be OK. You\u2019re gonna make something good. Nothing good has ever been made by someone who didnt believe to the core that he was making something good.<\/p>\n This conference is like a miracle, like a factory that manufactures belief. It makes me feel like I can do it. You can do it. We can do it.<\/p>\n Photo credit: Vlad Cup\u0219a<\/p>\n We know. There never seem to be enough takeaways from The Power of Storytelling. Have a look at what we learned from Day 1<\/strong><\/span><\/a> and Day 2<\/strong><\/span><\/a> of the conference in Bucharest.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The second edition of our international conference in Cluj Napoca brought on stage five award winning writers and editors, visual storytellers, storytelling coaches, audio wizards \u2013 amazing innovators who shared craft tips and insights into their work process, personal stories and wisdom. Jacqui Banaszynski opened with a talk about the importance of story structure \u2013 … Continue reading Takeaways from #Story15: Cluj edition<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":1738,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[24],"tags":[38,41,57,99,100,101,102],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1736"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3074,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1736\/revisions\/3074"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1738"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Jacqui](\"http:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/10\/Jacqui-Banaszynski-PoS-Cluj-2015.jpg\")
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