PR for story slam

Slams
http://windycitystoryslam.com/
First Person Arts' Story Slam: "Good Intentions" Philly

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/loophole/archive/2007/07/in_the_loop_story_slam.shtml

http://storyslamcharlotte.com/What the heck is Story Slam?
A community center that nurtures creativity, solutions and thoughtful discussion Fresh, rich story-telling by award-winning playwrights, poets, artists and musicians.Audience participation before the doors are open.A bold move by theatre veterans who believe that “it’s all story.”Story Slam! Charlotte is a series of performances of works from the Playwrights Project/New River Dramatists, a North Carolina-based research and development initiative by Mark Woods, Randell Haynes and others.

http://andersonstoryslam.org/
Anderson Story Slam is a story telling organization based in Anderson, SC. Our story telling events are held one Monday a month at McGee’s Irish Pub in Anderson. Our “story slams” feature seven storytellers, each sharing a five minute true story. These true stories are drawn from the storyteller’s personal experiences and are told without notes.

http://www.firstpersonarts.org/event/story-slam-strange-coincidence
Philly First Person Arts StorySlams are a monthly real-life-storytelling competition.

http://www.cac.ca.gov/mycalifornia/californiastoryslam1.php
High school juniors from select counties around the state are invited to participate in the My California Story Slam, a pilot-project writing competition that encourages students to use the knowledge of their lives and emotional journeys to create literature. The competition is made possible through funds from the sales of My California: Journeys by Great Writers, a fundraising project for California Arts Council literature programs for kids.

Info from the MOTH website:
http://www.themoth.org/storyslams

Following the wild success of our Mainstage series, The Moth sought to accommodate all the people who asked, “When can I tell my story?” and to encourage those people who doubted they had a story worth telling. The Moth StorySLAM provides a stage and a microphone, a theme to inspire and shape the evening, a lively and supportive audience, and a host to guide the festivities. Stories are limited to five minutes, and ten stories are heard.
The stories are scored by three teams of audience-member judges, and a winner is announced at every SLAM. SLAM winners later face off in a Moth GrandSLAM. Since 2001, the raucous, moving, funny and wild quilt of themed stories that emerge during each show has kept the crowds coming back again and again. SLAMs are now held on both coasts, in New York City and Los Angeles!

"What makes this different from a poetry slam, or other open mic night? The key word here is "story." Spin a yarn, take us somewhere in your few minutes. What will be much less likely to make the cut for broadcast: standup routines, impressionistic spoken word performances, or political rants. You cannot bring your own band, and while some great stories may require breaking into song, we're not looking for songs."

How to Participate
You want to tell a story:
• Consult our calendar to find our published theme
• Conjure, channel, craft and compose your story
• Practice so you can remember it without the benefits of paper. Then practice it so you can keep it down to five minutes. Tell it to your plants but know that they are a tough audience. Revise. Rework. Curse your plants for not believing in you! Revamp. Finesse. Shave off another two minutes. Try again. Voila! Forgive your plants. Indeed, they helped you see the light.

• Come to the Moth StorySLAM and put your name in the hat If you are one of the lucky 10 picked you'll have five minutes to woo the audience with tales of your on-theme escapades.
Unpicked? Fear not, some variation of your theme will surely rise again. All stories have multiple themes and stretching them to fit can be fun and even bring out elements you hadn’t recognized before. See our story tips below.

You want to be a StorySLAM judge:

• Let it be known! Seek out Moth Staff and ply with flattery and gifts or, just hang by the hat and ask!
• Once picked, be wise and heed the rules. Judge on the simple criteria: on time, on topic, a story (not stand-up comedy, an essay, or a rant)

You just want to watch:

The Moth adores our audiences. Please come and enjoy the jukebox of storytelling! Laugh with abandon, boo the judges if you think they are mean, weep at the sad parts, clap like crazy for the stories you love.


Story Tips:
Be Forewarned:
The Moth is NOT a venue for readings, it is a venue for tellings. No notes, papers, or cheat sheets are allowed on stage. Contestants are judged on sticking to the five-minute time frame, sticking to the theme and having a story that sticks—one that has a conflict and a resolution.

Start in the action.
Have a great first line that sets up the stakes or grabs attention.
Not: "So I was thinking about climbing this mountain. But then I watched a little TV and made a snack and took a nap and my mom called and vented about her psoriasis then I did a little laundry (a whites load) (I lost another sock, darn it!) and then I thought about it again and decided I'd climb the mountain the next morning."

Yes: "The mountain loomed before me. I had my hunting knife, some trail mix and snow boots. I had to make it to the little cabin and start a fire before sundown or freeze to death for sure."
Steer clear of meandering endings. They kill a story! Your last line should be clear in your head before you start.

Know your story well enough so you can have fun! Watching you panic to think of the next memorized line is harrowing for the audience. Make an outline, memorize your bullet points and play with the details. Enjoy yourself. Imagine you are a dinner party not a deposition.

No standup routines please.
The Moth LOVES funny people but requires that all funny people tell funny STORIES.

No rants:
Take up this anger issue with your therapist, or skip therapy and shape your anger into a story with some sort of resolution. (Stories = therapy!)

No essays:
Your eloquent musings are beautiful and look pretty on the page but unless you can make them gripping and set up stakes, they won’t work on stage.