6 word memoirs: debrief

What did I learn about storytelling?

The last time I was asked to write 500 word story, I was not able to explain all I wanted to say in so little words. I ended up handing in a story that was 1300 words. For that particular assignment my teacher was more than happy that I wrote double the amount of words, however for this assignment, that wasn't the case. One my be able to sense my frustration at the beginning of this project when I had to communicate a story using only six words. However, through this assignment, I was able to learn and appreciate the other ways of storytelling, whether it be with visuals or the importance of punctuation. It's not always the amount of words that communicates a story.


Where did I show my knowledge on storytelling?

My knowledge in storytelling was shown with the links I made from my text to the image. Not all of my pictures had a literal sense to my six words but I was still able to communicate my idea clearly. I was also able to show my knowledge in storytelling through my images with the way I edited them. The filters, colours and focal points I used had meaning and helped present my story. The punctuation I used was also a way to show the tone towards the subject I was talking about. All of these aspects were things that I did deliberately to help transmit my ideas through my memoirs.

What did I learn as a reader, writer, thinker or storyteller?

Something I found very interesting as a storyteller was that more words does not make a story is better. I have an issue with saying things that may not be relevant when I am telling a story. This assignment has helped me realize that less is more sometimes while telling a story. Even though lots of the stories I will tell in the future will exceed six words, I will still keep this in mind. As far as what I learned as a writer, with the criteria of six words, I learned where the places were that I could get away with less words and still communicate an idea. That, and also being able to realize where two words could be combined into one, or which words would describe what I was trying to say best. It was all a balancing act when it came to the exact number of words you had to present your story.