Welcome to Nutshell’s Storyteller Spotlight, where we give you a chance to get to know this month’s storytellers a little more. We asked our four storytellers to answer a few questions about stories and storytelling. October 16’s theme is “DARK HEARTS.” It’s true, it’s personal, it’s LIVE, and it’s gonna be a dark but beautiful journey. Come shine a light with us. OUR SHOW IS EARLY THIS MONTH! MARK YOUR CALENDAR! (And tix are 20% cheaper in advance!)
Meet Regina Stoops
What kind of storyteller are you? What is your storytelling “style”? What kind do you tell?
I tell true, personal stories drawn from a chaotic life full of detours off the supposed path.
How long have you been telling?
Seven years, although I had 15 years of stand-up comedy before I discovered storytelling.
What do you do when you’re not storytelling?
I’m a coproducer at Six Feet Apart Productions, an online storytelling platform started during COVID. We wanted a place for tellers to keep telling their stories while the world shut down.
Does the story you’re telling have a name?
Haunted Love.
Tell us a little bit about this story. Why did you choose it for “DARK HEARTS”? How are you interpreting the theme?
I’m interpreting it as a story about the love of a parent for their son and the ridiculous lengths you’ll go to in order to see them smile.
Any thoughts on what it means to commune with the darker side of life? How do we face what is harder, darker, more negative or less rosy?
Humor. That’s all I got.
Do you celebrate spooky season? What’s the best way to Halloween? Favorite trick? Favorite treat?
I don’t celebrate as much as I did when our kids were younger. We park ourselves in the driveway and ooh and ahh over the ghosts, goblins, princesses, and superheroes that come by.
Who is your storytelling idol and why?
There are many, many, many tellers I admire, but if I have to choose, I’d go with Bil Lepp and Ingrid Nixon.They are both amazing at weaving stories and landing the ending. Stories where you wonder, “Where are they going? Where am I?” Only to be brought full circle, with it all wrapped up in a neat little bow.
What’s your best piece of advice for someone who is a beginner and wants to learn how to tell a story?
Write your story, cut it in half, cut it in half again. Look at what is essential for the narrative arc and ditch the rest. Taking a class or workshop is a good idea, too.
Why should people come see “DARK HEARTS” on October 16?
One of my idols is in it, and you’ll be surprised by the human connections made during the evening.
Thanks, Regina! If you want to see Regina tell her DARK HEARTS story, she’ll be at our show on October 16!
Regina Stoops
is an award-winning storyteller, comedian, writer, and co-producer of the online storytelling platform Six Feet Apart Productions. Her stories have been heard on the Risk! podcast, The Moth Grand Slam stage, NPR’s Story Borealis, Unreeling Stories, and the Women’s Storytelling Festival. Regina uses storytelling as her weapon of choice to help tackle diversity, adversity, and suburban chaos.
When the world shut down in 2020, Regina helped build a place online so storytellers could keep telling. That instinct, that this stuff has to keep happening, somehow, somewhere, is the same one that keeps us showing up at The Sofia every month. Paid subscriptions are how we make sure our storytellers get paid for it, and how we keep The Nutshell True Story Hour podcast free for everyone. If these spotlights are your thing, consider joining us. xoxo, Amy
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