Multimodal Storytelling

 

    From "The Power of Digital Storytelling" by John King

As part of this week's assigned readings, we explored Catherine Ramsdell's views of storytelling and narration. She explains that storytelling is far more than just entertainment. Storytelling is, at its core, a form of communication, regardless of the message its trying to communicate. So let's answer the question: How does the concept of a "story" change based on the mode that's used to tell it? Namely, an interactive story map.

The way I see it, a story is a story. For example, if I wanted to tell you a story about the time my parents took me to a Halloween party, I would include my mom, dad, and myself as characters regardless of whether the media I used included text, pictures, video, or audio. Regardless of the way I present the story to you, I'd likely tell you about where the party was and what costumes we wore. I'd also tell you how I interacted with the adult partygoers and how I sat with my mom in the hatchback trunk of our car when I got tired of dancing. Essentially, what I'm saying is that the general themes and events of the story I've decided to tell you will be the same regardless. Ramsdell makes the connection that stories are not only a form of entertainment, but also a form of communication. Along those lines, the message that I'm trying to communicate won't change.

However, the mode we use to tell the story does have an effect on the way the story is told. Expanding on my previous example, my choice of media would change the amount and type of information I would give. If I told the story with just text, I would probably spend more time describing the details of the sights I saw - like what the costumes and location looked like. Whereas, if I included pictures, this information would be visually represented and wouldn't require as much description.

Let's come back around to the original question of how the use of an interactive story map would change the concept of a story. My short answer is that it would change the way the story is told, but not the message of the story. Due to the fact that an interactive story map utilizes multiple types of media, the amount of time I spend explaining certain aspects of my literacy history will be different than if I were only using text. The pictures I plan to include will do the job of helping the audience visualize the academic institution in question, as well as my age and appearance at the time. This will make it easier for my audience to imagine the setting of my story, giving me more freedom to explain the relevant events in the narrative. This will also help my audience place the page they're viewing in the overall timeline as they click through the story map, creating an overall fluidity to the story regardless of the order in which the individual time periods are presented.

Essentially, an interactive story map lets the reader decide certain aspects of the way the story is told. Yet, the message still remains the same.