The Craft of Storytelling

“He who works with his hands is a labourer. He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.” --St. Francis of Assisi 

As we learn and teach each other the craft of storytelling, we seek to gain excellence in working with our hands, our heads, and our hearts. Here is a list of some of the skills we hope to discover, explore, and master. While I am attempting to identify these skills as "hands", "head", or "heart", I think we will discover that the distinctions are not so sharply-drawn, and that there is an intermingling with all of them.

Voice

HANDS/Labour

Vocal Health
Breath Support
Projection
Diction

HEAD/Craft

Animation
Pacing
Timing
Vocal Variety

Heart/Art

Expression
Allowing the truth of the words to colour the voice
Passion

Body

HANDS

Control: posture
Movement
Gestures

HEAD

Animation
Pacing

HEART

Muscle Tension influenced by the text

Eyes and Face

HANDS

Eye Contact
Head Position

HEAD

Animation
Expression

HEART

Reality in the Eyes
Facial Expression coming from within
Passion

Ownership

HANDS

Rote Me
Repetition

HEAD

Understanding 
Interpretation

HEART

Breathing it, living it
Internalizing the words
Writing it on your heart

Research

HANDS

Basic reading of the material

HEAD

Studying the text, looking for nuance and meaning
Using other sources such as commentaries and dictionaries

HEART

Digging deeply for the truth
An attitude of prayer

Writing

HANDS

Grammar
Sentence Construction
Language

HEAD

Story Construction
Style

HEART

Caring about the subject
Belief
Passion

"Find a subject you care about, and which, in your heart, you feel others should care about. It is the genuine caring, and not your games with language, which will be the most compelling and seductive element in your style." --Kurt Vonnegut