TOP CONTENT | Creator's Corner: Best Story Content Grounded In Our Past & Current Life

NOTE: Creator's Corner is now being published on Wordpress, so you can access and read all of the columns (past and future) easily at one location. Click Here.

I ATTENDED ONE OF THE FIRST "alternate" high schools in the United States in New Jersey. The Team School was innovative and unique at that time because the students, teachers, and parents worked together to determine the courses, type of government to address conflicts and issues, and handled the daily operations. The mornings were dedicated to academic courses necessary for college preparation, and the afternoon courses were electives taught by parents who were professionals in their chosen fields.

LISA SANDERSON'S DAD TAUGHT the creative writing elective, and he drilled into our heads the following regarding story content: Write about what you know, what you are experiencing in your own home environments and communities. You will never go wrong with paying attention to what often goes unnoticed, and how these events and relationships affect you and those around you. 

Nick Lupi and Jimmy Nice, of Spit Syndicate. 
Image Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald. Photo: Nic Walker

Column Inspiration:
"Boho Sydney: Mapping Our Creative Clusters"

MR. SANDERSON TAUGHT US TO PAY attention and mine for gold in our own hearts, thoughts (and those of others), and locations grounded in our daily experiences of life. 

I CHOSE THESE TWO ARTICLES BECAUSE they remind me that there's so much value in the wealth of content in my past and current communities that I used to take for granted before taking Mr. Sanderson's class. As a storyteller, screenwriter, film producer, healing artist, content specialist (and award-winning writer/blogger, editor, art director, and marketing specialist) I know from past experience and successes that unlike Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, I don't have to travel to realize that "there's no place like home" for stories and other content.

FOR EXAMPLE, THE FLASH FICTION STORY, Back Up The Truck, is inspired by a domestic violence true story from my childhood. Many of us grew up in a war zone of domestic violence that impacted our lives in those moments and beyond.

ONE DAY MY BEST FRIEND WHO LIVED next door came running to my house to get my help. His "uncle" was beating his mother and we needed to find a way to distract him. First, we tried to physically pull Uncle Charlie off his mom, but he was too strong. So, we decided to distract him by taking as much of his clothing as possible from his room, putting the clothes into a pile in the backyard, and soaking the clothes with liter fluid to create a bonfire. We then ran back into the house and started yelling "Fire!" It worked!

THE SHORT STORY "GIFTS" is also inspired by a true story about a highly-anticipated first date gone wrong and what happens as a result.

Image Credit: Medium.com

Column Inspiration:
 "Living On The Edge Is A Creative Place To Be"

Creative Strategy: How I See Using This Story

1) USE THIS FLASH FICTION STORY in an anti-domestic violence campaign focusing on how it impacts children. Create a number of story scenarios to drive home this point to attract and engage audience stakeholders.

2) USE THE STORY IN A RAW, EDGY marketing campaign about childhood friendships that survive traumatic situations and endure the test of time that leads to happiness in some form--a product, event, fine arts project, or service they share (an antithesis to the traditional "Hallmark" variety content). My friend and I had to instantaneously come up with an intelligent, creative and practical solution under intense stress. The physical approach failed, so we quickly moved on to save his mom from that attack. We worked together to accomplish it. We were both about 11-years-old. 

THERE'S A LARGER MESSAGE in these stories for us: If two 11-year-old children are capable of these types of creative and practical solutions under this kind of duress, then certainly we can (or can learn how to) access these qualities within ourselves.

THIS STORY IS JUST ONE IN A SLATE that are either already written as short stories (some written under strict time constraints as the creative structure model) that are to become short film scripts or expanded into larger formats for film, television and theater.

MAY YOU DISCOVER MORE CREATIVE ideas and spiritual support now (and in the future) by exploring the Creativity & Storytelling 'Zine, and previous Creator's Corner columns:  How To Work (And Play) Well With "The Others" To Succeed; Best Visual Content = Storytelling Solutions via A&E Professionals, Lies & Storytelling: Strange Bedfellows in Shades of Gray; Best Storytelling Has Sensory Empathy (or It's Important to Engage the Senses), Get Up To Speed On Quality Do-It-Yourself Storytelling: On a Low Budget, Best Storytelling is Copied, Stolen Content? (or The Lighter Shade of Led Zeppellin), The Joy is in the Story Journey (or Mission Impossible), Best Story Content Grounded In Our Past & Current Life; Conflict Has Creative Value, Learn How To Use It; Card Decks & the Mystic or Visionary Persona, Here Comes Play-Doh, and Sacred Geometry–Visual Storytelling Content: One Of Top Four Creative Trends 2016.

Dare to shine, be generous, and love this life.

Valerie







Original Publication Date: May 4, 2016

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CREATOR'S CORNER is dedicated to sharing ideas that come to mind after reading and selecting articles for The Creativity & Storytelling Magazine (as the editor) that may be useful in a professional or personal capacity. Interest in creativity and spirituality as content for usage in arts & entertainment, media communications, marketing and advertising, and as lifestyle choices for businesses, projects and services (groups that have a way of life that may or may not be included in their brand identity), can be relevant to anyone anywhere in the world covering a variety of professions.

CHILL UPDATE (Dec. 2010): Stress Relief, Multi-System Conflict & Energy Balancing, Cleansing and More

So far, there have been two Chumpi Illumination (CHILL) events during the month of December 2010.  I was invited to participate in two group events: one public in Ringwood, NJ and the other private in Bethlehem, PA. Prior to the month of December I had only provided creative counseling and healing artist individual 60 and 90 minute private sessions to clients from my home office, the office of another practitioner in New Paltz, NY, or at a client's home.

FIRST CHILL PUBLIC EVENT A SUCCESS
On December 11-12, 2010, I attended a Native American Indian Christmas Fair in Ringwood, NJ where I was invited to offer healing sessions using my new, portable massage table in this type of environment for the first time. The CHILL sessions offered were for 30 and 60 minutes and included stress relief through energy balancing and cleansing (chakra and meridian systems), resolving opposing, polarized, conflict issues, and a neck, shoulder and back massage.

I didn't know what to expect in terms of the variety and number of people who would be interested in CHILL (Chumpi Illumination). My first customer who kicked off the sessions was a nine year old girl who said: "I am stressed out because someone keeps picking on me." Part of her session included muscle testing and questioning her body for the best solutions to address the bullying. Stress is high during the holidays and is an equal opportunity offender (age, sex, race, ethnicity, income bracket, sexual orientation, religion, disability, etc.), so I worked practically nonstop from 12:30 pm until 6:00pm closing on Saturday, Dec. 11. It rained heavily on Sunday so I had fewer customers and I ended early.

Thank you to Marcey "Tree-in-the-Wind" Langhorn and Tony "Moon Hawk" Langhorn for inviting me to participate in my first public event.

FIRST CHILL AT HOME PRIVATE EVENT A SUCCESS
Two customers (a woman and her son) traveled from Pennsylvania to attend the fair. The man contacted me about traveling to Bethlehem, PA to provide stress relief balancing and cleansing sessions for family and friends prior to the new year. On the weekend of December 18-19, I provided my first CHILL AT HOME event providing 30 and 60 minute sessions sponsored by a client at their home. People were hanging out, eating and talking while waiting their turn in pre-arranged shifts organized by the hosts (the man and his wife). They both received free one-hour sessions for hosting a two day event.

Clients who requested 60 minute sessions received additional services based upon issues shared with me or revealed via muscle testing and questioning to help them heal themselves. The ones I recall facilitating for clients included karmic softening to address deep-seated guilt over past negative behaviors in a relationship; extracting a negative energy "form" from the body and transmuting the residue with light;  dissolving multiple levels of energy "chains" that interfered with wellness (the woman believed a "hex" was put on her by an old boyfriend); and channeling a woman's Guide to help her realize that she has made herself unavailable for a future relationship based upon the stress of caring for her husband who died of cancer, plus carrying guilt that he died so shortly after she placed him in a facility. The Guide's message was that she is living the life of someone dried up like a desert, but her authentic Self is a lush, fertile oasis. She has so much to offer and receive. Of course, much more occurred over two days with nine customers but these are the sessions that stand out the most to me today.

Thank you to the couple who sponsored my first private home event.

HOST YOUR OWN CHILL AT HOME EVENT OR CONTACT ME ABOUT YOUR PUBLIC EVENT
Contact me to schedule hosting CHILL AT HOME events for your arts and entertainment family and friends or to invite me to participate in a future public event in the 2011 new year at discounted group session cost:

• Call (973) 986-8125 or email me. 
• Provide your email address in the box in the right hand column on this page to receive The Healing Artist Studio newsletter.
• Subscribe to this blog to receive notification when new blog entries are posted. 

Thank you everyone for your love, light, prayers and other support. I wish you and your loved ones a merry and CHILL holiday season!