Re: Personal Archeology
Document in the way which feels natural to you. Doesn’t have to be a “blog”, can be a notebook with coloured pencils, or buy yourself a fountain pen, or an audio recorder.
Importantly: Tell your stories in the way that feels comfortable like your favourite pair of shoes – then add context, and interestingness. The rest is up to audience to breathe life into it.
Then do again and again (regardless of outcome beyond self-enjoyment).
“What to do on day one of any new start-up project” – whether for business, nonprofit profit, campaign or revolution including: naming / branding, media kit and various descriptions, and building culture, excitement and a posse – all without spending much money – are covered in part 1 of a fast-paced *master class* workshop by Dave Olson from May 2013.
Download: Starting Your Story – Social Marketing Kung-fu 1 – workshop / spiel (1:07:02, 98.7MB, .mp3)
Community Feasthouse podcast feed – All manner of discourse from media interviews to various lectures and presentations. Topics include social web fu, creative culture, podcast making, DIY publishing, community cultivating, art making and related adventures.
Continue reading “Starting Your Story, part 1” – Social Marketing Kung-fu / workshop & spiel
Sometime around 2004, i went to a pal’s wedding in Connecticut – knowing i would see some old pals from Utah, unseen for many years, i assembled a run of (whopping) 4 copies of (an obviously handcrafted/bound) chapbook.
This little tome called “Shoebox” contained stories written while living in Utah alongside some of these lads in hopes of sparking memories and giving a little something of myself in thanks for their inspiration and friendship.
Cover photo is a thistle growing inexplicably from the red rocks of the Grand Canyon’s north rim on a wander i did with the groom of the aforementioned wedding.
As it goes, i never heard anything about the booklet, and forgot about the project until again Utah (autumn 2018) and buddy Dane’s copy surfaced during a move. I dutifully snapped a few lousy pictures for documentary evidence of creation.
The stories were written mostly in the “sudden fiction” style i’d experimented with after encouragement from James Thomas and Francois Camoin.
Continue reading “Shoebox” story collection / chapbook, 1987-1991
These note cards are residual evidence of a “lunch ‘n learn” and/or other spiel presented in some context or another.
As it goes, i can’t cover all of my Social Marketing Kung Fu(n) topics o’ wisdom in one session, so i make a “game show” where attendees choose their own adventure by choosing from these little prompts.
Shared here for future reference.
PS You can hear loads of my spiels about topics including: marketing, start-ups, PR, renegade social community building etc. via the Community Feasthouse podchannel if inclined.
Artifact dossier: Collage art boards from “Forgotten Vancouver Stories (aka Poets, Punks and Revolutions)” spiel presented in various formats at Pecha Kucha Night Vancouver, All-start edition, and Northern Voice 2013 closing keynote. Video and roundup of both prezos exists elsewhere in this archive.
Each collage “slide” was handmade (obviously) with ephemera from my personal collection (exceptions credited on final “slide”) then, arranged on hemp cloth “storyboards”, photographed by Rachel Ashe, then disassembled. An analog to digital remix of sorts. Presented here in rather large size for your printing/screensaver/ amusement and posterity.
Continue reading Forgotten Vancouver Stories (aka Poets, Punks and Revolutions) / collage art boards
Artifacts from likely forgotten places. Resurrected with fresh stories augmented with inky pens, broken typewriters, scissors and glue. Possibly sent to you.
Storymaker Dave uncleweed Olson shares an eclectic variety of stories from Vancouver’s counter-culture history on a stage adorned with a record player, campfire & cub scout blanket, art easel, flowers and an Expo 86 mug – plus pulls artifacts from an old-timey suitcase to illustrate forgotten past of a city which is/was much cooler than most realize.
Presented at Northern Voice, June 2013 in Vancouver, Canada, his 11th presentation to this noted personal expression conference (and his last talk before a medical “retirement”).
Filmed by Bruce Sharpe and Andrew Lavigne
Edited, Directed, Produced by Andrew Lavigne (also: With Glowing Hearts and Generation Social).
Music: Derek K Miller (RIP) “(You’re the) Big Sky”
Continue reading Revolutions, Punks & Poets: Vancouver’s Forgotten Stories
From time to time, I visit various classes associated with B.C.’s Simon Fraser University’s fine publishing program under the stewardship of Suzanne Norman. This time around, the class was something about personal publicity and brand building. As such, I share anecdotes gleaned from Hootsuite and dozens of other personal social and community projects from over the years of activism, media outreach and marketing.
Head to class for: Creative Social Publicity and Promotion at SFU (1:56:08, 84MB, .mp3)
More: Roundup of artifacts from Creative Social Publicity and Promotion at SFU
Creating memorable, keep-able promotional items can enhance your brand / campaign rather than getting tossed out. On a hiking trail, Dave shares “rules” and considerations from experience, including many examples and anecdotes, ergo:
Rules:
Examples:
Other Considerations:
Breaking rules:
Recorded spontaneously in May 2013 on Varley Trail, Lynn Valley, North Vancouver
Listen to: Making Great Swag – soliloquy on a trail, part 3 (23:37, 192k mp3, 37MB)
After a recent appearance discussing HootSuite culture, i sat down with Fiona Forbes and guest host Peter Verge to share a few of my favourite – somewhat-forgotten – Vancouver-centric stories. This time, the set was on-location at the Museum of Vancouver.
I shared anecdotes about rock and roll photographer Bev Davies, the Group of 7 bohemian painter Frederick Varley, and the elusive Grateful Dead shows in 1966 + name check for Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company.
The show also broadcasts a livestream which includes all the in between banter and offside comments and anecdotes from the Twitter stream.
