What is Storytelling?
A statement by the National Storytelling Network defines Storytelling as an ancient art form and a valuable form of human expression. Because story is essential to so many art forms, however, the word “storytelling” is often used in many ways. As a result, the National Storytelling Network would like to explain the term as it is used by the growing and vibrant community of storytelling practitioners in the United States and Canada. Our hope is to call attention to storytelling as an art worth promoting, and to help those outside the storytelling community to distinguish storytelling from other, related forms of human expression. Here is what most of us mean by “storytelling”: Storytelling is the interactive art of using words and actions to reveal the elements and images of a story while encouraging the listener’s imagination. 1. Storytelling is interactive. Storytelling involves a two-way interaction between a storyteller and one or more listeners. The responses of the listeners influ
