Using Stories and Humor: Grab Your Audience (Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series) [Paperback]

Joanna Slan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0205268935 | ISBN-13: 978-0205268931 | Publication Date: October 24, 1997 | Edition: 1

With endorsements from two of the largest and most influential public speaking groups -- the National Speakers Association and Toastmasters International-- this book is written by an award-winning speaker and storyteller. Stories add depth and interest to any presentation. They get an audience listening, add a change of pace, teach without preaching, provide a context for information, and create a bond between the speaker and the audience. This practical, down-to-earth guide will teach readers how to use stories and humor to support their speaking objectives. From the apparently "spontaneous" story that's planned well in advance to an entire presentation that is a story, the author demonstrates how professional speakers use stories and humor, and shows how readers can use these elements to add polish and appeal to their own speeches and presentations. Readers will find a wealth of step-by-step ideas, tips, worksheets, and exercises to help you make effective use of stories. They'll discover how to create the critical elements of successful stories, learn how to see with a storyteller's eye, master techniques like foreshadowing and pace to create interest and drama. They will even find out how to become a likable narrator, keep their presentation balanced, and fresh - even when called upon to repeat it often. This is an ideal reference for professionals and novice speakers who want be remembered by their audiences. Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series.

Product Details

• Paperback: 218 pages
• Publisher: Allyn & Bacon; 1 edition (October 24, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0205268935
• ISBN-13: 978-0205268931
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #387,605 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to create compelling stories and humor., February 13, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Using Stories and Humor: Grab Your Audience (Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series) (Paperback)

Author's comments: Bore no more! A step-by-step guide for finding, developing and sharing great stories. In addition, the section on humor offers important rules for using humor effectively and appropriately. Great storytellers sense the inherent drama in life's daily activities and work to heighten it, taking ordinary moments and transforming them into extraordinary insights. This book is a must for clergy, speakers, teachers, presenters, parents, sales people, association executives, business people, therapists, and anyone who wants to improve his/her communications skills. Includes: ways to find great stories, how to build characters and drama, use of significant detail to make your stories "sing," presentation techniques, practice techniques, tips for stage presence, when to use humor, where to find humor, how to deliver humor and who laughs and when. By exploring the tools of fiction writers, I encourage my readers to awaken the theatre of the mind. Once our audiences experience our stories, they will never be the same. Using the techniques in this book faithfully, you too can tell compelling stories!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulously helpful book, January 9, 2008

By 

Candace L. Calvert (Hill Country, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Using Stories and Humor: Grab Your Audience (Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series) (Paperback)

As an author, I'm very comfortable expressing myself via the written word--funny stories,quick wit, no problem. But put me in front of a live, breathing audience and: instant jitters! I was recently invited to act as KEYNOTE speaker for a conference, and was so relieved by the "toolkit" that Ms. Slan's USING STORIES and HUMOR provided to me. With the book's guidance, I was able to develop my own humorous stories, interact personally with my audience and present an entertaining and inspiring first-time keynote address. Especially effective, was the information on developing a "theme" for the humorous stories, and how a speaker uses this to support the ideas presented--I hadn't thought about that. Important too, was the encouragement to speak "from the heart," in order to engage the audience, as well as techno-tips regarding microphones, lighting, etc. The book was instrumental in changing my jitters to confidence,and my presentation was met with laughter, applause--and an immediate offer for another speaking engagement! I highly recommend this book.

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A down-to-earth guide for story-tellers, April 14, 2001

By 

Xavier Thelakkatt (Dayton, MN United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Using Stories and Humor: Grab Your Audience (Part of the Essence of Public Speaking Series) (Paperback)

This is a valuable book for the public speaker who would like to enhance the speaking style by the use of stories and humor. It provides practical tips and exercises to make effective use of stories in public presentaions. Stories have always been used in our society not only to add flavor and appeal to presentations but also to instruct and inform the audience. The first few chapters of the book deal with the importance of the use of stories for our generation and what follows is a clear road map for story-tellers out of the rich experience of the author and many other accomplished public speakers like herself. This handy guide with eleven chapters deals more with stories than with humor. Each chapter provides a summary and some exercises at the end. The basic nuts and bolts provided by the author here have been very useful to me in my teaching and preaching.