The Art & Science of Storytelling

Class Project

Tell a story about the most interesting person in your neighborhood, past or present

I founded Narratively to serve as a platform for local storytellers who were hungry to dive deeper. We believe in “slow journalism,” in the importance of those rich, narrative gems that truly capture what every city is all about. At Narratively, we explore one theme each week and publish just one story a day—the story comes first. And each piece is given the space and time it needs to have an impact and engage our audience—regardless of whether it’s a 5,000 word article, a two-minute audio piece, or a paragraph-long reaction posted on our interactive “Park Bench.”

What’s a story if it doesn’t somehow inspire, or get people to think, to wonder?

These are all skills you’ll learn in this class.

Over the course of this 2-week class we’ll each tell a story about the most interesting person in our local neighborhood, no matter where in the world that neighborhood is. We'll collaborate with one another in small Groups —online or offline —to get feedback on our work.

You'll hit the streets of our cities, talk to neighbors—young and old—bodega owners, dog-walkers, the “mayor” of the block, and then some. (Hint: doormen know everything). You’ll ask all the right questions to extract and understand this person’s story.

To share your story with the rest of us, you’ll explore the medium that communicates it best, whether that’s audio recording, video, narrative writing, a “live” story recorded on camera, or something even more creative you dream up.

We’ll all leave this class having heard stories from all over the world, pushing us beyond our comfort zones for the sake of a great, perhaps untold, tale.

Prerequisites

None at all! If you’re looking to improve your storytelling skills and have some fun doing it with people from all over the world, this class is perfect for you.

Beginner Difficulty
20

Student Projects Submitted

Project Guide by Noah Rosenberg

Founder & Editor-in-Chief at Narratively

I’m founder and Editor-in-Chief at Narratively - a digital publication born out of an overwhelmingly successful Kickstarter project. Narratively is a platform devoted to original, true and in-depth storytelling, which recently launched in New York and will soon expand to other cities. Each week, N... view full bio