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Storybook

“The truth about stories is that’s all we are,” writes Thomas King. We are the stories we tell about ourselves and the stories others tell about us. In this way, we need to share stories as much as we need to breathe air. Through stories, we learn. We celebrate. We remember. We pass down knowledge. We heal. We honour. We grow as individuals. We connect with others and we grow as communities. In short, we are alive through our stories.

Before there were books, radio, television, or movies, ordinary people entertained one another by telling stories. Their stories were recited, acted out, sung, and written down. Inventions like the printing press and television airwaves have now made it possible to share stories with a large number of people in faraway places. At the same time, storytelling has become the role of professionals, including authors, journalists, and filmmakers. Large companies have the power to decide whose stories will be shared widely. Some voices tend to be left out. Stories from the point of view of women, working class people, people of colour, queer and trans people, and people with disabilities are not always given equal space.

Digital stories

With the invention of the personal computer, a new kind of storytelling has appeared. It’s called digital storytelling. A digital story is a short film made by an ordinary person, rather than a professional storyteller. It combines images, sound, and text to tell a story about a part of that person’s life. This form of do-it-yourself media invites us all to take back our role as storytellers. Everyone’s voice matters. We all have something to say. Anyone with an online computer can make a digital story and share it with the world. This change has made it possible for people who have been silenced to speak out and be heard.

This book will introduce you to many moving digital stories created by ordinary people. It will also guide you through the process of making your own digital story. It is based on the work of the Center for Digital Storytelling in Berkeley, California. This organization is one of the pioneers of digital storytelling. For over 20 years, the Center has been running workshops that teach people around the world to express themselves using this art form. You can learn more about the Center for Digital Storytelling at www.storycenter.org.

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Even though we tell stories every day at school, over the dinner table, and on the phone, being asked to write a story down on paper can feel overwhelming. We may suddenly feel that what we have to say is not interesting or important enough to share. But a story doesn’t have to be as dramatic as a Hollywood movie to be worth telling. Everyday life is full of valuable stories. Joe Lambert of the Center for Digital Storytelling identifies some common story types, as well as some questions that may help us find the story we want to tell.

Someone important

Stories about someone important in your life

These stories may be about finding meaning in a relationship with a family member, friend, neighbour, or co-worker. The story may be a way to remember and honour someone who has passed away. It may be a story about romantic love.

• What is your relationship to this person?
• How would you describe this person?
• Was there an event that really shows what kind of person they are?
• What about the person do you enjoy most?
• What about the person drives you crazy?
• What lesson did you learn from the person that you feel is most important?
• If you had something to say to the person, but they never had a chance to hear it, what would that be?

Adventure

Adventure stories

These are stories about our travels and what we realized along the way.

• What was challenging about the trip?
• What was the best part of the trip?
• How did the trip help you see your regular life in a new way?

Accomplishment

Accomplishment stories

These are stories about achieving a goal, like getting a job or winning a sports game.

• What was the event?
• Where and when did the event happen?
• Who did you experience the event with?
• What moment stands out the most for you?
• How did you feel during the event?
• What did the event teach you?
• How did this event change your life?

Place

Stories about a place in your life

These are stories about special places like a home, a town, a gathering place, a mountain, or a forest. These places can shape our values and sense of community.

• How would you describe the place?
• Who shared this place with you?
• What experiences happened here?
• Does one of these experiences stand out?
• What lessons about yourself can you draw from this place?
• If you have returned to this place, how has it changed?

What you do

Stories about what you do

These are stories about your job, hobby, or volunteer role.

• What is your job or hobby?
• What experiences prepared you for this activity?
• Was there an event that led you toward this interest?
• Who influenced you or helped you develop this interest?
• How has this job or hobby affected your life as a whole?
• What has been the best part of doing this job, hobby, or volunteer role?

Discovery

Discovery stories

These are stories about learning. They might be about a first, an embarrassing moment, or a mistake.

• What was the event?
• Where and when did the event happen?
• Who did you experience the event with?
• What moment stands out the most for you?
• How did you feel during the event?
• What did the event teach you?
• How did the event change your life?

There is a seed of a story somewhere in the thoughts generated by these exercises. The key is to start with a small idea. Play with that small idea as though it’s a block of clay. Keep sculpting the details of your idea, looking at it from different angles until it starts to take on the rough shape of the story you want to tell.

Sculpting

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Megaphone

The stories that stay with us tend to be more than an event with a beginning, middle, and end. The stories that stay with us hold a bit of insight into what it means to be human. This insight is the main idea or message of the story. For example, the Ojibwe nation has told stories for thousands of years about a character named Nanabush. Nanabush stories are used to teach children lessons such as the importance of sharing and the value of our elders.

While listening to stories can leave the audience with an important lesson, telling stories can also help the storyteller find a lesson. This is one of the goals of the digital storytelling process. Examining our stories helps us reflect on who we have been, who we are, and who we will become.

For example, when putting together All the Truly Important Things, the storyteller learned that his lived experience of being diagnosed with HIV allows him to bring comfort to his newly diagnosed HIV-positive patients. When he tells these patients that all the truly important things in life are not lost, they can see that he is a living and breathing example of this truth. This hope may be the best medicine he can share with his patients, and it’s a medicine that would not be as healing if he did not share the same illness.

In 7th Word, Taté BlackBear’s message is that the classroom is everywhere. After the government spent over 100 years trying to erase the Lakota language, learning Lakota might seem impossible. But Taté’s successes keep him hungry to learn more. Some of his most meaningful learning happens in the bus on the way to the skate park, or sitting around the kitchen table eating berry pudding. Taté’s digital story shows that by embracing these moments, Taté has been — and will continue to be — an active learner of Lakota language and culture.

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Emotions

Part of the magic of storytelling is that it can reduce the distance between people. It can create connection and community. In a world where loneliness is far too common, this is a valuable gift.

Stories reduce the distance between people when they honestly tap into the emotion of the events. If the emotions are exaggerated, the story seems dishonest. If there are no emotions, the story will also seem dishonest.

It can be difficult to honestly tap into the emotion of our stories. Many of us are not used to identifying our feelings. Our feelings vocabulary might need room to grow. Below is a list of words that might help you build your vocabulary.

Happiness

A story can contain many different emotions. The overall emotional feeling of a story is called the tone. For example, the tone of All the Important Things might be described as hopeful. The storyteller has found a career that allows him to help others with HIV, and he is hopeful that he will have a bright future despite his illness. The tone of 7th Word might be described as curious. The storyteller is surprised he knew the Lakota word for berry pudding and curious about what else he will learn from the world around him. The tone of Go Around might be described as empowered. The storyteller is empowered because she is able to use her voice to keep herself and others safe, and nowadays people listen to what she has to say.

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Book

One of the most common pieces of advice given to storytellers is, “Show, don’t tell.” This means that a storyteller should allow the audience to experience the story through scenes, rather than through a summary of events. A scene is alive with action, words, thoughts, feelings, and senses. A summary simply tells the facts of what happened. We will return to the difference shortly.

Before creating a scene, the storyteller needs to identify which scenes will best tell the story and its insight. There may be one scene or many. The most important scene to include is usually the moment of change. In Tanya, Monte Hallis starts by explaining she didn’t really know what a friend was. The digital story ends with a scene where Tanya asks Monte to lie down next to her so she can tell her a secret. In this moment, Tanya refers to her as “Monte Faye.” Monte was stunned that Tanya knew her middle name. Monte does not say, “This is when I knew I had made a real friend,” but the audience can powerfully feel it through the scene. This was Monte’s moment of change.

In Go Around, Cathy Jaynes starts by explaining she had been in an abusive relationship. During that time, her feelings and her voice didn’t matter. She once told a helicopter pilot that he was about to crash and he ignored her warning. Once again, what she had to say was ignored. The digital story ends with a scene where Cathy tells a helicopter pilot to stop, or they will land on a bunch of wires. The pilot listens. Cathy did not say, “This was when I knew that my voice matters and there are people who will listen to me,” but the audience can feel it through the scene. This was Cathy’s moment of change.

What was the moment of change in your story?

The structure of the story can be built around this moment of change. Keep in mind that the script should be quite short — between 250 and 375 words long. This will result in a digital story of about three to five minutes. You can rely on the audience’s common sense to fill in some of the more obvious details. You will also be able to rely on images to tell part of the story. A storyteller gives the audience just enough information to understand the importance of this moment. If the audience is overloaded with information, they may grow bored.

Think back to the moment of change in your story.

• What scenes are important to include to help someone understand how you changed?
• What details show that you changed?

Cue card

Spend some time writing down your ideas. Then, ask your instructor for a single cue card. Take 10 minutes to write a first draft of your story. Write whatever comes to mind. Don’t worry about grammar or spelling. Write as if you are talking to a dear friend. Don’t stop until your time runs out or you have filled up your cue card.

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Pictures

A digital story has many parts, including visual elements and audio elements. Visual elements are things you can see. People use all kinds of visual elements in a digital story: photos, drawings, maps, videos, letters, pages from a book, and clothing. Photos are the most common.

Headphones

Audio elements are the things you can hear. A digital story has the sound of someone telling their story, called a “voiceover.” It can also have background music, called a “soundtrack.” The soundtrack might be music recorded by the storyteller or their friend, a song from a CD, or a song downloaded from the Internet.

Before you start to gather the images and sounds for your digital story, it can help to set up a folder on the computer to keep everything organized. Creating folders is a very useful computer literacy skill.

A computer works like a filing cabinet. It uses folders to organize and store files. Most computers come with a folder that holds your music, a folder that holds your pictures, a folder that holds your downloads, and a folder that holds your documents. You can also make your own folders.

As you choose visual and audio elements, it is important to think about copyright. A copyright is a law that gives the owner of a creative work (like a story, song, or picture) the right to decide what other people can do with it. A person can only include items in their digital story that they have permission to use. Fortunately, many people make their creative works available for anyone to use for free. You will learn how to access these later in this book.

Once you have decided the visual elements you’ll use, you are ready to plan out how they will come together in your digital story. Filmmakers use a tool called a “storyboard” for this purpose. A storyboard is a place to plan a visual story. It is also a place to plan what the audience will see and hear during each part of your story.

Remember that folder you made on the computer? Now it’s time to use it. A folder is just a place that holds files. Each picture, document, or recording on your computer is a file. The next step is to create the computer files that will go into your digital story.

Collect, make, and find the images from the list you made earlier. You might bring the images from home, take them with a digital camera, or find them on the Internet.

If you need to download images from the Internet, follow the steps in Appendix 3: Downloading a Picture from Pixabay.

Scanner

If your image is on a piece of paper (like a photo, map, book, or drawing), scan it and save it on the computer. Follow the steps in Appendix 4: Scanning an Image.

Digital camera

If your image is in a digital camera, transfer it to the computer. Follow the steps in Appendix 5: Importing Pictures from Your Digital Camera.

Many different programs can be used to make a digital story. WeVideo is the program explained in this book because it is free and easy to learn. To use WeVideo, you’ll need to create an account. This requires you to have an email address, because your email address will be your log in name. (If you don’t have an email address, follow the steps in Appendix 5: Creating a Gmail Account.) Follow these steps to create a WeVideo account:

1. Open an Internet browser, like Explorer, Chrome, or Firefox.

2. Type www.wevideo.com in the address bar at the top. Press ENTER.

3. Click SIGN UP in the top right corner.

4. You’ll see three different options. Choose GET STARTED, under the word FREE.

5. Click FIRST NAME and type your first name.

6. Repeat step 5 for your last name, email, and password. Your password needs to have at least six letters. Write down your password and keep it somewhere safe.

7. Click SIGN UP.

8. A video will pop up. Don’t watch it. Click CLOSE.

Now you have your own WeVideo account! You can access it from any computer that has Internet. Just remember, with your free account, you can only create five minutes of video each month. Don’t hit the PUBLISH button until you are sure you are finished.

1. Press the GET STARTED button.

2. There is one more short form to fill out. Click the buttons beside the options that are true for you. Choose NONE for “editing experience,” even if you have done video editing before.

3. Click START EDITING. You will be taken to a screen called the Editor. This is where you combine all of your media into a film.

Let’s upload your visual media to the WeVideo Editor. Right now your files are on your computer, but they need to be saved to the MyMedia folder in WeVideo so that you can use them. Moving files from your computer to the Internet is called uploading. Here’s how to do it:

1. At the top of the Editor, there is a menu that says: Home, Projects, Media, and Exports. Click MEDIA.

2. Click the big green UPLOAD MEDIA button.

3. Click BROWSE TO SELECT

4. A window will pop up. Click DESKTOP from the list on the left.

5. Click your folder (the one named after you). Click CHOOSE.

6. Click EDIT from the menu at the top of the screen.

7. Click SELECT ALL. Now all of your images will be highlighted.

8. Click CHOOSE again. Now all of your images will be uploaded to the MyMedia folder in WeVideo. This may take some time. When all the bars are green, the images are done uploading. Click the X in the top right corner. This will close the Upload window.

9. To log out, click on the small picture of a grey person’s head and shoulders in the top right corner. Then click LOG OUT.

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Microphone

After your images are uploaded, it’s time to create your voiceover. You will record yourself reading your story. This makes some people nervous, because it can feel strange to hear your own voice on a recording. But just think: your voice is an instrument that only you will ever get to play. Speak from your heart and you can’t go wrong. You may wish to practice reading your story out loud a few times. When you’re ready, ask your instructor if there is a quiet place you can record your voiceover. Then follow these steps:

1. Return to WeVideo at www.wevideo.com. You may need to log in again with your email and password. Once you’re in your account, click CREATE A NEW VIDEO. This will load the Editor.

2. On the bottom left of the screen, you will see a picture of a microphone. Click the microphone.

3. When you are ready to record your voice, click the microphone again. (If any boxes pop up, click ALLOW.) You will see a countdown. Then the computer will start recording.

4. If you make a mistake and want to start over, press stop. Then press the microphone button on the screen when you are ready to try again. You will be asked if you want to replace your previous recording. Click YES if you are okay with recording over top of it. Click NO if you want to keep it.

5. Once you are happy with your voiceover recording, click the green checkmark on the left. Your voiceover will be saved. This may take a minute.

6. Click on the MENU and click SAVE.

To log out, click on the small picture of a grey person’s head and shoulders in the top right corner. Then click LOG OUT.

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Filmstrip

1. Return to WeVideo at www.wevideo.com. You may need to log in again with your email and password. Once you’re in your account, you should see the video you last edited. It is probably called Untitled Video. Click CONTINUE EDITING.

2. Now you are looking at the Editor. Let’s get to know each feature of the Editor.

a. On the top left of the Editor is the Menu. Click on it to see a number of options, such as SAVE. Click anywhere else on the screen and the Menu will disappear.

b. Below the Menu is a folder called MyMedia. It displays all of the visual media you have uploaded. There is a grey scroll bar on the right side of the area that holds all your visual media. If you click down on it and don’t release your finger, you can move that bar up and down to see all of your media. Try this.

c. Beside the media panel is a Preview Screen. It has a button to rewind, play, and fast-forward. This space allows you to see what your digital story looks like while you build it. Press play and watch what happens.

d. Along the bottom of the Editor is a Storyboard, similar to the one you made on paper. This is where you arrange your visual media in the right order, decide how long each image will appear, and add a soundtrack.

If you are using a print version of this book, refer to the online version for videos that guide you through the steps below.

Giving Your Digital Story a Title

1. Find the first box in the storyboard. Hold your mouse pointer over it.

2. Click the EDIT button that appears.

3. Click in the grey box. Type in a title for your digital story.

4. Click the green DONE EDITING box.

5. Click on the Menu and click SAVE.

Adding Images to the Storyboard

2. Find the image in your MyMedia folder. Hold your mouse pointer over it.

3. Click the ADD button that appears. The image will appear in the storyboard at the bottom of the screen.

Changing the Order of Images in the Storyboard

1. Hold your mouse pointer over the image you want to move. Move your mouse pointer to the sides of the image until the pointer turns to four arrows.

2. Left-click and keep holding the mouse button down. The four arrows will turn to a grabbing hand. Move the mouse to position the image in the right spot. Let go of the button when the image is in the right position.

Deleting Images from the Storyboard
One or more interactive elements has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view them online here: https://opentextbc.ca/abealfreader6/?p=76

1. Hold your mouse pointer over the image in the storyboard you want to delete.

2. Click the trashcan button.

Changing the Timing of an Image

1. Click the rewind button under the preview screen. It looks like two arrows pointing backwards.

2. Click the play button. Watch the video to see how the image matches up with the voiceover. Decide whether the image appears for too much time or too little time. Press the play button again to stop the preview.

3. Hold your mouse pointer over the right side of the first box in the storyboard. The pointer will change to two arrows. Click down on the mouse button and don’t let go. Drag the mouse to the left to make the image appear for a shorter time. Drag the mouse to the right to make the images appear for a longer time.

4. Click the rewind button.

5. Click the play button. Watch the video to see whether the image appears for the right amount of time. Press the play button again to stop the preview.

6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 until the image shows for the right amount of time. When that image is done, work on the next image right beside it.

Continue these steps until the images match the voiceover in a way you are happy with.

Adding a Soundtrack

1. Click the MUSIC NOTE button on the left side of the storyboard.

2. Click the FREE MUSIC folder.

3. Choose a folder with a name that matches the tone of your story, such as “Serious, sad, worried” or “Exploring, tension.”

4. Click on a song and listen to how it sounds. Repeat until you find one you like.

5. Turn the volume down so viewers will be able to hear your voiceover above the soundtrack. To do this, click on the volume slider and don’t let go of the button. Drag the slider to the left to make the soundtrack quieter.

6. Click the USE THIS TRACK button.

7. Rewind your digital story.

8. Press the play button to see how everything looks and sounds together.

You can repeat these steps to choose a different song.

*Queer can be used to refer to people whose sexual orientations and gender identities fall outside of what society traditionally expects. This term has been — and still is — used in hateful ways, so some people feel uncomfortable with it. It is important to use this word with care.

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Theatre

Stories are usually created to be shared with an audience. Some stories are meant for an audience of one person. Other stories are meant to be shown to a group at a special event. Many stories are put online for a worldwide audience.

1. Return to WeVideo at www.wevideo.com. You may need to log in again with your email and password.

2. Once you’re in your account, you will see the video you last edited. It is probably called Untitled Video. Click CONTINUE EDITING.

3. Push the PUBLISH button near the top of the Editor.

4. A window will pop up asking you to set a title for your video. Type your title and press the green SET button.

5. You will see a new screen. Decide whether you want your video to be public or private. If the video is public, anyone you give the link to will be able to watch it. If the video is private, only you will be able to watch it. Choose one of these buttons.

6. Click the green PUBLISH VIDEO button.

7. A new window may pop up asking you if you want to try Timeline Mode. Click the X in the top right corner to close this window.

8. Your video will take some time to process. When the green bar says 100%, it is done. Click WATCH THIS VIDEO to see your final digital story.

9. From this screen, you can DOWNLOAD the video to your computer, so you can watch it even if you are not on the Internet.

10. Click the SHARE button (which looks like a link) to get a web address you can give to people who you want to watch your video. A window will pop up with a web address. Carefully write this web address down and keep it in a safe place. Later on, you can email it to any friends you want to share it with.

Creating a digital story is more about the process than the product. This means that, whether you are thrilled or disappointed with your digital story, what matters most is what you have learned. The final task in this book is to reflect on the process and your learning.

You are coming to the end of a difficult, but hopefully very rewarding journey. Whatever experiences await you in the future, know that your inner storyteller is always there to help you make sense of this weird and wonderful world we live in.