A Quarter for a Tale from Sean Buvala

Mid-Year Rethink for Children's Book Authors

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Wed, 3 Jul 2024 12:30:00 -0700

Hey there, wonderful storytellers!July is my "rethink" time. It's mid-year 2024, and the depth of summer or winter depends on where you are. It's the perfect time to take stock and reflect on your journey as an author and speaker. Let's dive in with the three "what" questions:1. WHAT HAS BEEN my experience this year?Take a moment to think about your 2024 so far. What has worked? What challenges

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 12:42:00 -0700

Author, Speakers, Creative: There are 3 steps to building your heart-centered, integrity-based business (pay your bills, breathe freely, secure your future) with good financial stability and an even deeper impact on the world around you. Stop playing games with the whole "starving artist" mindset. 1. Identify, define, and focus on just who you want to serve and why. Get focused- your "everybody"

Float. Reinvent. Pivot.

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 13:46:00 -0700

Folklore is filled with stories of people who come to a fork in the road, often met by mysterious and maybe dangerous creatures.As you move forward in the world still firmly held in the grip of a pandemic, you've got some choices. Float. "I hope that everything goes back to normal." That is probably not going to be in our future. The wisdom stories of the world tell us that this rarely

Authors: Three Things for Better Public Speaking

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Fri, 20 Dec 2019 11:42:00 -0700

Do you have to have the cheesy motivational=speaker vibe in order to be a good speaker? Nah. I work with lots of people for whom Speaking™ is not their career but rather a part of their work. Authors, I'm talking to you. Here are three things that make you a good speaker... ****** Sean Buvala has a blog. This is a good as any. :-)

San Diego Navy Pier Sunrise (December 2019)

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Tue, 17 Dec 2019 11:03:00 -0700

Lest anyone think I have faded from the world and this blog, I am still here. We've moved most of our discussions to http://smalltoothdog.com and http://seantells.com, but we're still active.

Journal for Tweens: You Wake Up One Morning

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Mon, 3 Dec 2018 18:42:00 -0700

http://youwakeuponemorning.com Sean Buvala talks about the latest creativity journal from The Small-Tooth-Dog Publishing Group. 50+ prompts to get the creativity of the young people aged 10-13. Lots of creative pages for journals, drawings, art, graphic novels, dot grid, and more. You Wake Up One Morning: A Kid's Prompted Journal to Create Great Stories in Words and Art! You Wake Up One

StoryRise Goodyear: What Is StoryRise

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sat, 1 Dec 2018 16:03:00 -0700

"The intention of StoryRise is that it's a 90-minute experience of contemporary storytelling for adult audiences. So, that means what you'll hear here is everything from traditional stories to more of the slam poetry style pieces. Our tellers range from people who have been doing this for a long time, I've been at this for 30 years, some people with lots of experience to some people that were

The Selkie and Her Children

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Tue, 3 Jul 2018 16:37:00 -0700

The Selkie and Her Children: A Story by Sean Buvala. Excerpt: The man looked out toward the beach and there he saw a bonfire and around it were dancing the silhouettes of a woman and her children and as he looked about he saw that there was a pile next to them and so he figured that these must be selkies and that pile was their pelts. He knew that if he took their pelts away from them,

Where to Find Stories (Basics)

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sun, 17 Jun 2018 16:57:00 -0700

"I don't have any stories!" I hear this from newcomers rather often. Where will you find your stories? Let us look at some ideas. 1. World FolktalesSimple tales such as Aesop's Fables are fantastic starting points for gathering stories and you will find these especially good for business and non-profit settings. You'll also find a variety of tales from the Grimm Brothers or Joseph Jacobs that

Take Away the "Take Away."

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sun, 7 May 2017 12:58:00 -0700

May I Suggest: Don't always tell people what to think about your stories. As a Storyteller, you might need to learn to trust that the relationship between you and the audience is something that develops. First, it grows because of your ability to be open and accessible as a teller. Secondly, it grows because your audience is full of competent, life-living human beings. In all actuality, our

Inappropriate Folktales Podcast

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Tue, 28 Jun 2016 19:14:00 -0700

I have a little side project posting both freshly and brand-new recorded folktales as well as recordings dusted off from my archives. Gosh. I have archives. I am old? Come listen. Subscribe on all the normal places like Itunes and GooglePlay, too. I'd love to have you listen to something inappropriate. We're at http://inappropriatefolktales.com should you wish to wander about. ******

The Six Stories You Need in Your Storytelling Repertoire

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Tue, 5 Jan 2016 21:14:00 -0700

"Do I have enough stories for the work I want to do?" is a common question I hear. The number of stories you need changes based on where and when you will be using your stories. That's the short answer. Generally, you need three times the stories you think you will need. A one-hour concert is best served with three hours of available content. However… As a coach, I like to think of the

So You Went to A Storytelling Festival...Now What?

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sun, 4 Oct 2015 23:49:00 -0700

So, you have been to a storytelling festival. What now? Storytelling festivals and major conferences come in all shapes and sizes.If you have had the fun of attending one, you might be wondering "what now?" I have some suggestions that I think might help you explore the art of oral storytelling just a bit more. Below the picture are some notes and then a few specific items that might apply to

Apples for the Princess (Children's Book Trailer)

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Mon, 28 Sep 2015 14:16:00 -0700

Hello all! Here's the "official" trailer of our new *our first* book for kids! "Apples for the Princess" adapted from the Grimm's "The Griffin." We are very happy to finally get this out to you. Also known as, "why I have been so quiet lately." Come get your copy. Promo: Explore the values of kindness and honesty with your kids. Featuring hand-cut collages from watercolor, acrylic, cloth and

Storytelling Practitioner: Toss Out Expired Stories

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Tue, 26 May 2015 14:19:00 -0700

A story that was perfect for you once doesn't have to stay perfect for you forever. Digging through my refrigerator and pantry the other day, I came upon some expired products. These finds are not a unique experience for most of us; there always seems to be that one thing in the back that we just forget about. While some products do well when they age for a bit, others really do become useless

Storytelling Slams: Cocktails, Canapes and Calliope

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Sun, 19 Apr 2015 11:12:00 -0700

Like me, a calliope is sometimes full of hot air. A bit of personal reflection: "Cocktails, Canapes and Calliope" is the new way that I am understanding the ongoing evolution of the Story Slam. There's been, in my little circles, some discussion by the oral storytelling community (both online and offline) about story slams. I've been reflecting, mostly for myself, on my evolving image of the

Storytelling Practitioner: What Does 'Show, Don't Tell' Mean?

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Wed, 8 Apr 2015 00:01:00 -0700

Storytellers use too many words...sometimes. In this next "Hard-Core Storytelling Practitioner" post, I am talking the concept of "Show, Don't Tell" (written as Show or Tell in this article) that is prevalent in the "sacred" texts (giggle) of many who practice oral storytelling. Background This is all Show. You would need some Tell to understand this pic, huh? I've been noticing lately in

The Journeyman Storyteller: Ready for the Next Step?

sean@storyteller.net (K. Sean Buvala) — Mon, 12 Jan 2015 13:50:00 -0700