The new website (www.storynet.org) is on line!

It’s in its plain, beta format, but it’s up and running, useful, and ready to be gussied up with photos and new pages and features over the coming months.  Finally it is easy to get information to and about NSN.  The redesigned website comes to us thanks to countless hours of pro bono work by web designer Karen Wollscheid (www.storybizdesign.com).  Thank you, Karen!  The NSN Board has voted to award Karen a life membership as a small token of thanks.

If you have photos you’d like us to consider adding to the website please send them as digital jpgs to webmaster@storynet.org.

New Directors have been elected in four regions

Taking office in 2009 will be:

            Western Region:        Sandy Oglesby

            Southeast Region:     Caren Neile

            Pacific Region:          Cathryn Fairlee

            Northeast Region:      Lauretta Phillips

NSN plans national advocacy for storytelling

NSN has set up the Arts Recognition Task Force, led by co-chairs Mary Hamilton and Jane Crouse.  The goal of the ART Force is to persuade the National Endowment for the Arts to recognize storytelling as a distinct, independent art form – and thus to start a national movement to reform the arts listings of regional, state, and local agencies.  As every storyteller who has ever tried to apply for funding or for professional roster listings knows, this will ultimately increase the visibility, credibility – and fundability – of storytellers. The first step is to create a listing of storytellers throughout the nation who are currently involved in Arts Rosters in some way. Be sure to submit your information as soon as the ART Force contacts you. We can’t harness the power of our collective voices if we don’t hear from you!

 

Heroes Campaign is launched

For those of us who wish to support NSN, but might not be in a position at this time to make a direct donation, the HEROES CAMPAIGN is the answer!  Designed to raise awareness OF storytelling while it raises money FOR storytelling, Heroes Campaign asks NSN members across the country to sponsor events to benefit NSN.  We’ll help with publicity and celebrate our storytelling heroes in the magazine and elsewhere!  For more information, go to http://www.storynet.org/support/heroes.html.

 

Our first Storytelling Heroes have blazed the trail!  

·        At National Story Night on October 2, Bobby Norfolk, Barbara Freeman, Gayle Ross, Diane Ferlatte, David Novak, Faye Wooden, and Rixon Lane donated their performances and raised $2300 for the NSN Grants Program.

·        In Arizona Dustin Loehr and Kim Sheperd produced a Heroes Campaign potluck, and raised $327.

·        and more events are in the pipeline over the next few months!  Let us know what you would like to present.

A huge thank-you to these entrepreneurs!  We are hoping that 100 Heroes Campaign events will take place in 2009.

 

Good financial news

2008 Conference: Thanks to our Event Coordinator Karin Hensley, with a large team of magnificent volunteers and pro-bono experts organized by Yvonne Healy, and generous sponsors including Northlands Storytelling Network, Yvonne Healy (again!), Karen Wollscheid, and Elizabeth Ellis, the National Storytelling Conference in Gatlinburg brought in nearly $25,000 for NSN. 

 

2009 Budget: At the October Board of Directors meeting Finance Chair ML Barron led the Board through a process of developing a preliminary budget based on base, best, and worst case scenarios for revenue. We set priorities for expenses and estimated their costs. It was an enlightening process. We concluded that NSN is in a good financial position to continue with the current staff, office expenses, and magazine and to begin looking at producing a major conference in Los Angeles in 2010 and subsequently planning to move our offices to an urban center. To fulfill our priorities, we will have to raise monies. Several campaigns are under way to do this.

 

Bookkeeping: Over the past several years NSN’s accounting has become increasingly tangled.  It has become more and more difficult to generate clear reports.  In response to this, the Board has decided to revamp our accounting from the ground up to begin 2009 with a new, simple, sustainable bookkeeping system.  We applied for and received a technical assistance grant from the Tennessee Arts Council to carry out this much-needed redesign.  Thanks to initiatives by Wendy Welch and ML Barron, and to current leadership by our Corporate Treasurer Nancy Kavanaugh, NSN is on track to accomplish this.

 

NSN Announces the 2009 J.J. Reneaux Mentorship Grant

With great pleasure, we announce that Dustin Loehr of Mesa, AZ, has been awarded the J.J. Reneaux Mentorship Grant for 2009.  Dustin, who is an accomplished tap dancer as well as a creative storyteller, will be working with mentor Motoko Dworkin of Amherst, MA, on techniques of integrating his tap skills into story performance.  The Mentorship Grant provides funding for a younger storyteller (18-30 years of age) to be coached by an experienced performer.  http://www.storynet.org/programs/grants/reneaux.html

 

Membership – and bonuses

NSN gained 100 members during the National Festival, and now that the redesigned web site is running and PayPal is providing on-line payment options, more and more members are renewing and signing up for our Teller Directory ($20! a bargain! and you can add audio and video if you wish).

 

Please sign up your friends who are not yet members – and be sure to tell them of the wonderful new-member bonus provided by August House Publishers (http://www.storynet.org/membership/bonus.html).

 

Speaking of bonuses: Is your local storytelling organization an Affiliate or Associate member of NSN yet?  If not, Cherish Bound is providing a valuable bonus for new Associates and Affiliates (http://www.storynet.org/membership/bonus.html), and all members of these organizations will receive discounts on NSN membership as well.

 

2009 is the Year of the Regions

In order to reach out to storytellers and story lovers unable to travel to a national conference, NSN will co-sponsor one storytelling event in each of our seven national regions in 2009 (http://www.storynet.org/events/yearofregions.html).  Watch for an announcement soon of these varied and interesting programs!

 

The on-line Events Calendar is getting under way

Send event listings to Sharon Rogers, our wonderful calendar volunteer, at calendar@nationalstorytelling.net.  Check out coming events at http://www.nationalstorytelling.net/upcomingevents.  Soon we hope to have a Google map connected to the calendar so that you can easily find events in your state or region.

 

Remember that you can also list your event with a calendar ad in Storytelling Magazine!  See specs and deadlines at http://www.storynet.org/support/advertise.html.

 

How to send messages to the NSN Staff or Board

We want to hear from you!  The new Contact feature on www.storynet.org is an easy way to reach the right staff person or the Board with your message.  Current Board and Staff listings are also posted on the web site. 

 

Quote of the month

        I joined the NSN this past winter. In less than one year I've grown more and have learned more about the importance 
of storytelling than in my previous ten years as a storyteller. The NSN is making storytelling part of our national culture 
and the importance of storytelling cannot be overstated. 

        Every field of endeavor inside or outside the workplace can be positively affected by stories. From the education of 
our youth to the ties that bind our elders to us and our past, storytelling is important. In our rapidly changing world, 
storytelling keeps us firmly grounded with constant and consistent reminders of good old fashioned values, principles and 
morals. In this era of IPODS, text messaging, Game Boys, HDTV and the like, NSN has provided opportunities for people to 
enjoy each other's company through storytelling. NSN's support of storytellers, what it is and who we are is outstanding. 

        Though we've never met, I'm involved in your Mission. I wish you and your team well in your future endeavors.

 Peace,

Ivory D. Williams, President

Detroit Association of Black Storytellers, Inc.