Welcome to the Last Story. We made it.

Over the last few months you have explored storytelling from your own perspective.

• Me in six words.
• Me in 30 seconds.
• A personal anecdote.
• A true personal story told to entertain — perhaps even with a little embellishment.

These have been fun to hear. You’ve spoken from a first-person point of view and you’ve proven to be well-trained in the art of telling your own stories.

Now we are going to tell someone else’s story.

From a different point of view.

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A New Perspective

Last month I suggested you could use a family history story or legend for your assignment. We all chose to tell a personal story instead — which is wonderful.

This time you will tell a family history story or legend.

And. You. Will. Like. It.

To understand how to tell someone else’s story, we first need to talk about perspective — also known as Point of View.

When you tell a story about yourself, you are speaking in First Person.
You use words like I, me, mine.

“I was riding my bike down the hill when suddenly, my brakes fell off! All I could do was aim for the brick wall so I didn’t crash into the old woman with the baby buggy.”

When you tell a story to someone and speak directly to them, that is Second Person. You use words like You, yous, and yours
Think of it like instructions in a game:

“You’re running through the woods. You eat a chocolate cake. You’re caught in a bear trap.”

When you tell a story about someone else, there are three people involved:
the storyteller, the listener, and the character(s) of the story. You use words like he, she, and them. Those guys. Over there.

That is Third Person.

This is the point of view you will use.

But why?

Because third person is where it’s at.

When you tell a story in first person, you get to say, “I was terrified,” and we all nod and believe you. Of course you were. You were there. You’re the expert on you.

In third person, you don’t ghetto do that. I mean, sure you could say, “He was terrified.” And we’ll probably believe you. But really you can’t just announce feelings like a weather report. You have to prove it. What did he do when he was scared? Did he clear his throat? Did she pretend not to care? Did he suddenly become very interested in his shoelaces?

You’re the narrator- You actually have to show us. And that’s annoying, I know. But it’s also better.

Third person also gives you distance. You’re not just reliving the story — you’re narrating it. You get to decide how we see this person. Is he heroic? Slightly delusional? Deeply stubborn? Accidentally brave?

You’re in charge of the camera angle. You get to tell us everything or very little.

And here’s the bigger thing: when you tell a family story in third person, it stops sounding like, “So yeah, Grandpa once did this thing…” and starts sounding like something that belongs in the family archives. Something that could be told at a reunion. Something that should be told at the reunion. Something people say, “Hey, tell us the story about Grandpa’s thing.” They demand to hear… the Legend. 

You’re not changing the story.

You’re just telling it like it deserves to survive.

And if that doesn’t motivate you, I don’t know what will.

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Watch These Videos

First, watch these short videos to understand perspective more clearly:

Here are some quick examples:

First person:
“I walked two miles in a blizzard; my boots were full of slush and I swore like a pirate.”

Third person, Limited:
“He walked two miles through the sideways snow; every step sucked the heat out of his toes until he swore like a pirate.”

Third person, Omniscient:
“He fought across two freeze-bitten miles that winter — the boy who swore like a pirate — and the town remembers him for it.”

Same event. Different feeling.

Perspective matters.

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Choosing the Right Family Story

Your assignment this week is to find a story from your family history.

Is it legend?
Is it folklore?
Is it slightly suspicious but beloved?
Perfect.

Do a little research.

Or don’t.

If she did something interesting and there’s a compelling story that can be shaped into an entertaining 4–6 minutes with a purpose — I’m fine with that.

The story should do something for you personally. There should be a reason you are sharing it.

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Watch This One Too

You don’t need to watch the entire video. At one point the woman on the right side of the screen completely changes her hair and does a commercial. It’s about 10 1/2 minutes in. You can stop there.

As you watch, think about these questions:

• Tell the stories you’re passionate about. What is a story that immediately comes to mind from your family history? You may need to research some.
• What’s the difference between a life timeline and a story arc?
• What would be a strong opening hook for a family story you know?
• Why is practicing a family story important? What could go wrong if you try to tell it cold?
• What details might you uncover by writing a short draft of an ancestor’s day? (Sensory details. Small decisions. Contradictions.)
• What details can you add to make a story more vivid without changing the truth?

How did she research her grandmother’s work as a telephone operator?
Can you do similar research for one of your ancestors?

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Remixing a Family History Story

A remix means you Copy, Transform, and Combine something existing and make your own version.

You are not inventing a new story. You are retelling an existing family story in your own voice — shaping it with craft.

Ask yourself:

• When is it okay to embellish? (Don’t overdo it. Keep the truth.)
• Is it acceptable to imagine a character’s inner thoughts? Probably — if you aren’t forcing a new narrative.
• What makes a story worth telling again?
• Do family legends serve the living, the dead, or both?
• Does remixing risk embarrassing someone still living?
• Is the story meaningful to your family identity?

You are not changing the story. You are telling it intentionally.

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Try These Exercises

Copy (learn by imitation):
Rewrite this sentence in your own voice but keep the structure:
“Grandma never missed a Sunday; she made gravy like she was stitching a quilt — with care and a little stubbornness.”

Transform (make it yours):
Take a short family anecdote and retell it from another person’s point of view — the child, the neighbor, even the dog.

Turn a brief factual account into a short fable or a newspaper headline.

Combine:
Take a recipe memory and a travel memory and combine them into one scene that reveals a family value.

Merge two versions of the same event into a cohesive narrative that explains why details differ.

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A Word About Legends

In our family it has long been told that Oscar Fontano booked passage for himself and his family on the Titanic to come to America and join the Saints in Salt Lake. But when the time came to board, he was told the ship was overbooked and he would need to pay extra to keep his tickets. He couldn’t do it. So he stayed behind and worked to earn enough to travel later. Divine Intervention? Saved from certain death by the hand of the Lord? Perhaps.

The problem? The Titanic wasn’t overbooked. It was only about half full on its maiden voyage.

So maybe he simply just didn’t have enough money in the beginning and the story of the overbooked ship grew to make it a bigger story.

Or maybe he lost his ticket in a poker game to some lucky young man from Wisconsin named Jack.

The facts aren’t clear. What we are dealing with here is a legend.

Legends live in families.

That’s fine.

If you want to believe the legend as it’s been told, go for it. No one is fact-checking your family reunion.

Just don’t invent something completely fantastical that replaces the heart of the original story.

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How Do You Make It Good?

Watch this:

Remember what we’ve already learned:

• Start inside the moment. Events are not stories. Struggle is story.
• What is the problem? What could go wrong? What changes because of it?
• Build tension.
• Escalate.
• Include vulnerability.
• End with power — not a lecture.

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The Assignment

You will prepare and perform a 4–6 minute family-history story told from a third-person point of view.

Your story must:

• Be based on a true family event or legend
• Use specific details and sensory language
• Include escalation and a clear turning point
• Maintain a consistent third-person narrator stance
• End with strength (not a lecture)
• Follow a clear structure: Before → Problem → Turning Point → After

Remember:

Start inside the moment.
What is the conflict? Where’s the struggle?
Does something change?
Where can you add vivid detail?
Where is the vulnerable or complex moment?

Where’s the power?

And finally:

Deliver it well.
Watch your timing.
Be clear.
Be engaging.

The stories you tell shape how your family remembers the past.

Tell this one in a way that makes someone want to hear it again and again.

And have fun.

ANCIENT CIVILIZATION

Week 5

You have buried your culture. In class we will go dig up  a culture that you will get to discover. Please remember to bring a shovel.  You may want smaller shovels and brushes to help keep the artifacts intact.  You will have one rotation to figure out the culture you discovered. Next IA week, April 23, you will present on your newly discovered culture. Your group presentation will be about 20-30 minutes. Please remember to make your group presentation engaging. DO NOT BORE ME!!! You may have holes that you don’t understand. You have all  been in a storytelling class, use it. You are presenting on the “archeological find of the century!” You just unlocked a brand new culture. Present it well.  This is a group effort. Connect with your group. I repeat, DO NOT BORE ME!

Remember- dead men tell no tales. Please do not discuss your cultures with each other until after our final IA week is finished. 

Watch Ancient Impossibles. Pick an episode you haven’t seen yet,  but that you will find interesting. 

Send me an email or text and tell me what you have learned about yourself in regards to group work. If you have any angst about group work it might be a good time to use the skills you learned last week and scribble it out and release it.