An Introduction/ Call to Guest Bloggers

Hey! And other things!

Dearest massmouth folks n’ friends,

First, I’d like to introduce myself.  My name’s Hannah – I’m a writer, story enthusiast, assistant to Norah Dooley and a volunteer here at massmouth.  Also, as of now: Blog Editor.

Our former editor, the esteemed Owen Grey, will still be contributing as a featured blogger, so keep your eyes peeled for his next post!

And on that note:  how would you like to blog for massmouth?  Our regular season starts back up in September and we’re looking for people (fans and newcomers alike!) to write slam reviews.  There are perks involved!

What to expect:

Story slams happen three to four times a month.  In a nutshell, they are small competitions where professional and amateur storytellers sign up to tell a five-minute story based on personal, real life experiences (similar to The Moth, or NPR's This American Life - but more exciting! and local!).  A panel of volunteer judges choose two winners, and the audience votes for a third.

We’re looking for a minimum of 500 words, including all factual information (date, venue, names of hosts, judges, special guests, contestants and winners) and your impressions/ a brief recap of the stories you loved.  The deadline (that means proofread and ready to post) is 24 hours after the slam start time (AAH!).  While we reserve the right to edit (and are happy to offer support every step of the way), we do expect a finished product.

And now for perks!  You, as guest blogger, get into the slam you’re reviewing for FREE!  If you meet the deadline and send us your post within 24 hours of the slam start time, we’ll throw in another free slam! BAM!

How to apply:

Step 1: Watch three (3) massmouth videos from any past event and write between 200 and 500 words about one (1) of them.  Videos can be found on our website:
http://massmouth.ning.com/

Step 2: Send your writing sample to Hannah@massmouth.com, along with a brief (50-ish word) bio and links (if any) to writing you’ve done previously.

Also, please indicate if you’re interested in blogging for us regularly.  We’d be happy to consider “one-time” reviews, but ideally we’d have people covering a minimum of 1 slam per month (or more!).

Finally, we're always looking for insight into the storytelling community.  If you go to a storytelling event that you really dig and want to write about it, or stumble across an article that you think really speaks to the power of story -- please feel free to e-mail me/ pass it along.

And that’s all!  Looking forward to hearing from you.

- Hannah