ELI Web 2.0 Storytelling workshop: Introduction

Slide 1: Web 2.0 Storytelling: Introduction ELI Annual Conference January 28, 2008 Bryan Alexander, NITLE

Slide 2: What is it? An emergent set of storytelling practices, growing out of Web 2.0 technologies and cultural forms.

Slide 3: Caveats This framework is probably not your project Whole project versus piece versus principle

Slide 4: Who are people in this? Roles Questions • Producer • Why these platforms? • Consumer • How to discover • Scholar and participate? • Teacher • How to support? • Consultant • Supporter

Slide 5: But wait, what's storytelling? “The last man on Earth sat alone in a room.”

Slide 6: But wait, what's storytelling? “The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door.” (Fredric Brown, “Knock”, 1948)

Slide 7: But wait, what's storytelling? • Beginning, middle, end • Delight and instruct • The Freytag triangle

Slide 8: Put another way What are stories about? What is content? 2. About someone important 3. About an important event 4. About what one does Center for Digital Storytelling, Digital Storytelling Cookbook. http:// www.storycenter.org/cookbook.html

Slide 9: Put another way What are stories about? What is content? • Personal versus impersonal • Creative fiction vs nonfiction composition • Curricular vs campus vs personal vs etc. (storyteller, Ripton Vermont, 2008)

Slide 10: Web 1.0 storytelling • Offline, analog What can we learn from it? content (textbooks) • Hypertext • Evanescent • Multimedia • Browser-focused

Slide 11: Web 1.0 storytelling Example: Dreaming Methods (2000ff) http:// www.dreamingmethods.com /

Slide 12: Example: “Ted’s Caving Journal” (circa 2001) (one copy, from http://www.angelfire.com/trek/caver/page1.html)

Slide 13: Features: • Multilinear • Multimedia • Very Web • Serial structure

Slide 14: Digital storytelling roots • Digital Storytelling movement Digital Storytelling at Ukaiah, 2006

Slide 15: Digital storytelling roots Educational projects growing • Community • Curricula • Support (http://connect.educause.edu/Library/Abstract/StorytellingintheAgeofthe/42327)

Slide 16: Transmedia storytelling (Henry Jenkins) Digital storytelling • Multiple platforms • Commercial • Fan base…

Slide 17: • Franchise or brand • Control across sites Digital storytelling • Diffuse boundaries

Slide 18: Digital storytelling roots Email chain letters, jokes • Social • Boundaries fuzzy • Microcontent (Snopes.com)

Slide 19: Digital storytelling roots • Virtual community facilitation (1980s on) • Chaotic fiction, including ARGs http://www.unfiction.com/compendium/2006/11/10/undefining-arg/2/

Slide 20: Next: Web 2.0 Storytelling: Platforms