The Art of Storytelling: From Parents to Professionals

By: Hannah B. Harvey, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Hannah B. Harvey

Length: 12 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

An absolute treat for the heart and mind, these 24 lectures demonstrate how to master the art of storytelling, offering insight into the process of crafting and delivering a tale to enhancing the stories you tell everyday - to your children at bedtime, in your conversational anecdotes, and in your presentations at work. Teachers, lawyers, clergy, coaches, parents, and anyone who wants to understand the power of stories to capture hearts and minds will benefit from these lessons.

You'll discover practical methods for building dynamic tension and capturing - then maintaining - your audience's attention. You'll acquire tips and techniques for finding, selecting, and preparing stories, whether they're based on your own experiences, time-honored folk tales, or beloved family yarns. You'll also learn to choose expressive language, craft compelling characters, refine your narrator's point of view, shape your story's plot, structure, and emotional arc, use body language to connect with your audience, and more.

Part how-to workshop, part intellectual study of the history of narrative, these lectures feature exercises that literally get you moving to develop your stories and make them more enjoyable. Professor Harvey's interactive activities and "side coaching" sessions are designed to make you comfortable enough with your story to tell it naturally and make impromptu changes as needed. You'll even learn what to do if the unexpected occurs while telling a story to a roomful of kids or giving a presentation, and about the practical considerations of using props, PowerPoint, and microphones in various scenarios.

©2012 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2012 The Great Courses

excellent superb magnificent

I found this book as a professional speaker to be highly insightful entertaining and a source from which I'll gather more information in the future I'd suggest anyone that seeks more insight about how to tell stories better use this book as a reference

Basic, but solid course

Basic principles that sound obvious, but can be thought-provoking if you really get into the course. I enjoyed the book most when I did nothing and focused on the book. Not one to listen to while doing other things. Hannah Harvey can be a little eccentric with her telling (a good thing in story telling), but this can be a little awkward for passers by if played aloud.

not bad but not as good as other great courses

The instructor was good, but was more about performing a speech, than writing one.

A must read, it’ll change you as a person!!

I really appreciate Hannah’s skills. She gives great insight on storytelling and very specific directions. As the final chapter was coming to an end, I was already planning on setting a time for the second listen!
Get the document of the course as well. It is great for reviewing the chapters and making notes.
Thank you Professor Harvey 🙏

Exceptional Learning Experience

If you could sum up The Art of Storytelling: From Parents to Professionals in three words, what would they be?

Extremely enlightening useful

Who was your favorite character and why?

Hannah, the professor who teaches this course is exceptional. She is funny, animated, extremely talented and knowledgeable. Her stories that illustrate the concepts she teaches are heartwarming and draw listeners into the techniques she teaches.

What does Professor Hannah B. Harvey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Dr. Harvey has great voice inflection and you need to listen to actual stories to understand and appreciate the oral techniques that she teaches.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes, I laughed many times, was really touched by some of the stories, and I am now convinced that I can be a good story teller following Dr. Harvey's instructions.

Any additional comments?

I am going to order the guidebook from Great Courses since there is no transcript. I will probably listen to the course again with the guidebook and take notes.

very good with two oddities

this was recorded on video apparently because there are references to watching her, so you don't get full content from the audio version. But you do get 95% of it. presenter puffs her breath periodically which is a little anoying to listen to after a while. learn some great tips and I've already put this into practice and I'm telling better stories. overall I would certainly recommend this lecture.

Captivating

I have always considered myself to be a terrible storyteller and I was looking for a step-by-step guide to telling stories. This course helped me realize that storytelling doesn't work that way, it's much more complex and beautiful and there's no "right way" to tell a story.

Mrs. Harvey is a phenomenal teacher & storyteller

As someone who runs and plays Roleplaying games on a regular basis, having an idea and plan for the art of storytelling is key, as you are expected to act and react accordingly to the impulses of everyone at the table. Hannah Harvey teaches how to pick up on the queues of others to let storytelling be less of a lecture and more a shared experience. Storytelling is meant to be a shared experience regardless of the venue and getting good at it is truly one of the more human elements of our society.

A great course.

Have the freedom to act during your listen

I listen at work, and there are parts and techniques you can’t participate in at work. Still insightful;)

This course was great

If you were interested in storytelling or if you find that you are a storyteller for business or entertainment I highly recommend this. I came away with lots of new ideas both to better do my job and create my art