Storytellers Unplugged

So what do storytellers do when you "unplug" them from their repertoire?

Chart Toppers of 1349!

Coming soon to a castle near you! Or a tavern.

Or a dung heap.

Angels. Devils. Shapeshifters. Wizards. Heroes. Monsters. Princes.
Paupers. Death.

And a turnip.

Fourteenth century pop culture fans, look out! Storyteller Tim Ereneta is counting down the hottest tales that blazed up the European charts seven centuries ago*. Come hear the mischievous and macabre stories that lit up the Middle Ages.

With the Black Plague outside your door, let's party like its 1349!

* Okay, they didn't really have pop charts in the 14th century, but for the sake of artistic cohesion, I'm pretending that someone, a storyteller, or storytelling aficionado, is keeping tabs of the stories most popular in Europe. Stories from Italy, from France, from Macedonia, from the Holy Roman Empire. Oral stories, of course, since in 1349 there's no such thing as a moveable type printing press in Europe.

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Where you can find the stories:

"The Owl," "The Turnip," "The Ungrateful Son" (that's the one with the toad) can be found in The Brothers Grimm's collection of Household Tales.(Links are to the SurLaLaune Fairy Tales site, which features Margaret Hunt's 1884 translation.

"The Rooster Who Wanted to Be Pope" and "Salpedda (Isabella) and Her Brother" can be found in The Robber with a Witch's Head: More Stories from the Great Treasury of Sicilian Folk and Fairy Tales Collected by Laura Gonzenbach, edited by Jack Zipes.

"The Woman Who Married a Snake" can be found at D. L. Ashliman's site of Folktales as "The Water Snake," here.

"Long, Broad, and Sharpsight," can be found at Wikipedia. The 1890 version of A.H. Wratislaw from Sixty Folk Tales from Slavonic Sources can be found online at the Sacred-Texts.com site. It's also available in Andrew Lang's The Grey Fairy Book, and in Ruth Manning-Sanders A Book of Wizards, and translated as "Longshanks, Girth, and Keen" here.

I've put a version of "Aunt Misery" online at Everything2 -- the entry has references for more versions available.

What Kind of Stories Do I Tell?

I tell traditional stories: folk tales. fairy tales. ghost stories.

I tell them straight up. I prefer to tell them to adults, but I'm happy to tell stories to teens. I can tell stories to kids who know how to listen.

But those folk tales-- and those fairy tales-- they may have happy endings but along the way some really terrible things happen. I don't edit those out, the way that a children's picture book or an animated movie might. I tell these stories to adults, to remind them of the power these stories have had for centuries.

I really enjoy fairy tales of transformation: disguises, shape-shifters, quests with mysterious wise old strangers and talking animals and magic objects and monsters that can only be defeated with an improbable series of actions that require several even more improbable objects obtained with the help of unlikely allies. These stories go on for a long time, so if you want to hear them, bring an extra log for the fire.

"Chart Toppers of 1349." Some of the wonder tales and some of the dark folktales from Europe, dating back to at least the 14th century. Tales to forget about the Black Death, tales to remind you that life is short, heaven is your reward, and danger lurks outside your door... and we're counting down the hits!

"That's Disgusting." Traditional tales of bodily functions. Okay, I'll admit it: this one is aimed squarely at kids, Boy Scout gatherings, and science museums hosting the Grossology exhibit. A multicultural collection of stories about vomit, mucus, poop, and farts.

I don't tell personal stories. At least, not my own personal stories:I've got an hour of personal stories by Prince Charming. The dirt on Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Cinderella. It's comic. It's ironic. It's called "Happy Endings are Overrated: the Life and Times of Prince Charming" and it's appeared at house parties, festivals, and stages around California.

Welcome, STORYTELL visitors!
Category: MySpace

If you're visiting from the Storytell listserv, welcome.


I don't actually use the blog here (yet), but thought I'd add an entry so that if you are a storyteller or story listener new to Myspace you can at least get a feel for some of the features it offers.The easiest way to discover whether you'll use Myspace, of course, is to sign up for an account. It's free. And, if you're not used to "hanging out" online with teenagers, it's slightly scary. Here's a hint: if you're just starting out, use just your first name, or a nickname or even an online alias for your Display Name. (Most people on Myspace don't use a last name for privacy reasons) BUT think carefully about your "Myspace Name," because it will become part of your URL later. You can go back later and change your  Display Name. You could be "Jane" or "Jane Smith" or "Jane Smith, Storyteller" or "Storyteller Jane Smith" or even "Galinda the Wonder Fairy." But your Myspace Name is forever, so think carefully-- you likely will not want to be saddled with a URL like  www.myspace.com/iluvkittens

Myspace allows you to dress up your personal page with background art, an infinite combination of colors, and a favorite song. With some Googling, you can also get glittery cursors, bizarre fonts, slideshows, and videos. But please don't.

Yes, your Myspace page is an expression of your personality. But it doesn't have to be a chimera of extraneous bells and whistles (like the personal web pages of 1998). Keep it simple: if you are considering using Myspace as one tool in your marketing repertoire, remember that the page needs to extend your brand. It should look professional, or at the very least (since making a clean, simple page is actually difficult on Myspace) should not induce a headache.

After you've created your own page. Find your way back to mine, and click "Add to Friends." That way you can start building your network. Of course, if you have teenage children of your own, you can instantly gain 200 new friends (just ask Dianne de las Casas).

Feel free to contact me with questions, here, or on the Storytell list.

Have fun,
Tim

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