Record Your Story > Prepare for Your Storytelling

Upon Arriving

A volunteer facilitator will greet you at the StoryLine bus. Once you are settled in and comfortable, the facilitator will share a brief overview of ECHO's mission and programs. During the recording session, your facilitator will take notes, keep time and monitor the audio. Facilitators are not trained interviewers, but are happy to offer guidance to story partners/individual participants, as requested. 

The Conversation 

TIP: It's helpful if you have given some advance thought to what you would like talk about and share. This holds true whether you and your story partner are going to be talking about shared experiences or the life experiences and stories of one in your pair. (See "Telling Your Story" below.) 

A typical recording session allows for up to 40 minutes of conversation and story sharing. An additional 10-15 minutes is set aside for some basic paperwork and a quick photo. Your facilitator will monitor the time.

More Conversation Tips:

• Make eye contact with one another…ignore the microphone.
• Be yourself. If that includes laughing, crying, yelling, saying umm a lot, so be it.
• If the conversation moves into a sensitive area and you're not sure how to proceed, consider asking a question like: “Are you comfortable telling me more about that?" If the answer is no, move on to something else. 
• Don’t be afraid to ask, “How did that make you feel?” It’s one of the most powerful and interesting questions there is.
• Be a good listener…be attentive, curious…and genuine. 

Wrapping Up 

At the conclusion of the session, your facilitator will give you a free CD copy of the recording. If you agree to sign the release form giving ECHO the right to use the recording for program purposes and to place a copy in the archives of the Forsyth County Library, your facilitator will take a photo of you and your story partner. A limited number of recordings are selected for editing and airing on area radio stations. You will be notified in advance if an edited story from your session is schedule to be broadcast. 

Telling Your Story

We don't tend to think of ourselves as storytellers, but nothing could be further from the truth. We share bits and pieces of the stories that shape our lives everyday. It’s how we discover what we share in common and connect with one another. Here are some questions to get your wheels turning...

• Who are the people/what are the events that have most influenced your life? What lessons did you learn from them?
• What were the "shoulds" and "oughts" that you grew up with? Do they still guide your life or have you shed them for a different way of thinking? 
• How would you describe the branching points in your life...the people and experiences that influenced the direction of your life...or that changed your understanding or point of view? 
• What are some your happiest memories? Why?
• What life lessons/ways of being in the world have you sought to instill in your children? grandchildren?
• Did certain stories get told over and over again in your family? What were they? What did you learn about yourself/life from listening to those stories?