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createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall
@createdbyrcw.bsky.social
190 followers 120 following 2.2K posts
Storyteller, photographer, science nerd, Marlies fan Story analyst, coach & mentor @ So, What's Your Story?
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createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · Sep 4
You have a superpower.

Simply put, you are you. Only you have lived your life.

And that you-niqueness means you can tell stories no one else can. So, tap into that superpower & tell your stories.

Please subscribe to, like & share this video, & comment a you-niqueness below.

youtu.be/1ax3QAjJB38
Tap Your Superpower
YouTube video by Randall Willis
youtu.be
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createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 14h
LISTEN TO THIS has a killer line-up for its Hallowe’en show on Thurs, October 30!

Break A Leg sacrifices endless tales of body horror & personal injury.

And damned, do I have a bloody good gory… er, story to tell!

Tickets available at: www.nowlistentothis.ca

#storytelling #truetales #ShowUp
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createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 20h
An incredible opportunity to strengthen & expand your #storytelling #craft with the freewheeling joy of #improv

AND to learn from the uniquely talented & gracefully empowering Christel Bartelse

DO NOT miss this online opportunity! Details at: storytellingtoronto.org/Courses

#improvisation #ShowUp
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 21h
Blessed are the few who cross the First Draft finish line…

…only to find that a #marathon of #rewrites lay ahead, interspersed with hurdles & high jumps, javelins & sprints, hammers & long jumps.

#Storytelling, at its finest, is an #endurance contest.

sowhatsyourstory.ca

#rewriting #writing
Runner Jesse Owens (Stephan James) braces to cross the finish line in this scene from the film Race.
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 1d
I am sorry, my plans are cancelled for a couple of days as I have some reading to do.

Thanks @pulmyears.bsky.social & @houseofanansi.bsky.social
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createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 1d
I have a handful of friends in ABQ who routinely post photos of the skies filled with balloons...

so incredible to witness and such diversity of designs!
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 1d
When there's coffee in a scene, I assume someone will drink it. You don’t need to tell me.

But might the character use his coffee mug to avoid answering awkward questions or to hide his face?

Rather than describe minutiae, focus on what augments our understanding of the story.

sowhatsyourstory.ca
A hockey fan drinks coffee from a PWHL mug while staring blankly. (Photo by & of @createdbyrcw)
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 2d
TALES TORONTO takes us HOME on Oct 14 with stories of belonging & conflict, family & alienation.

Come hear what home means to Dena Jackson, Nicholas Rice, Lynne Torrie, Narges Kushki & co-host Briane Nasimok.

Seating is limited. Details at talestoronto.com

#storytelling #spokenword #ShowUp
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 2d
Oh, apparently I became confused as well... it is spreading!
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 2d
KEN HALL PRESENTS THE COMEDY BAR ADVANCED STORYTELLING SHOWCASE

Mon, Oct 27 @ 8:30pm, Comedy Bar Danforth, Main Stage

Get your tickets at: comedybar.ca/shows/SHOWCA...

#storytelling #spokenword #monologues #truetales #ShowUp
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 2d
For audiences, what happens to a character is less important than how the #character feels about & responds to what happened.

We connect with the character through their #emotional response as we have likely felt those feelings despite rarely having experienced what they have.

sowhatsyourstory.ca
The climactic moment of a story I told onstage at Toronto’s Burdock Music Hall for Replay Storytelling.
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 2d
Sorry, Paul.

Not my intent.

Just thought the graphic with the biography labelled best in fiction was odd as the book is non-fiction. I know you have no control over that
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 3d
Shouldn't the JOHN CANDY book be Best in Non-fiction?

What're you tryin' to pull @pulmyears.bsky.social? (I am kidding about Paul)
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 3d
Glad to hear your creativity is flowing, & possibly erupting, again.

I find even going for a walk in my neighbourhood or visiting local natural areas does wonder for those ebb moments.

Anything, really, that allows my mind to loosen up without conscious effort stimulates my creativity.
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 3d
Do you have a funny, embarrassing story you would like to get off your chest in a room full of strangers?

Listen To This is looking for your most cringe-worthy yet uproarious tales for its November show.

Public catharsis/humiliation will set you free.

nowlistentothis.ca

#storytelling #ShowUp
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 3d
The cosmic irony of our existence is that we are simultaneously insignificant & infinite.

Our insignificance eliminates all pressure to define a single path while our infiniteness offers limitless possibility.

#self #selfawareness #selfcare #potential #possibility #opportunity
Through cloudy skies, a supermoon finds us amusing. (Photo by @createdbyrcw)
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 3d
On a good day, creative #storytelling is like whitewater rafting: an incredible, chaotic thrill.

On a bad day, creative storytelling is like whitewater rafting in the movie Deliverance: same but with more squealing.

sowhatsyourstory.ca

#screenwriting #writing #filmmaking #publishing #theatre
Three whitewater rafters carry a fallen man as a fourth rafter defends the group with a bow in this moment from Deliverance.
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 4d
“Randall is one of the greatest creative cheerleaders we’ve ever come across at Collab Writers. Thank you, [Randall], for your devotion & dedication to the craft & to creators of all kinds.” – Jennifer Griffiths

You never have to face your creative efforts alone.

Visit sowhatsyourstory.ca or DM me
CAPTION: “Randall is one of the greatest creative cheerleaders we’ve ever come across at Collab Writers. Thank you, [Randall], for your devotion & dedication to the craft & to creators of all kinds.” – Jennifer Griffiths What are you working on? And how can I support that? What are you struggling with? And how can I ease the challenges? What have you stopped working on? And how can I help get you back on track? You never have to face your creative efforts alone. Visit sowhatsyourstory.ca or DM me & let’s chat.
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 4d
Silly #sarcasm
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 4d
Although the path is mine to select and the journey is mine to lead, my passage is made more pleasant, my destination is made more satisfying, by those who buoy my wings, by those who cushion my steps, by those who celebrate my arrival.

Thank you all.

#journey #lifepath #lifelived #gratitude
A tern soars across a clear blue sky. (Photo by @createdbyrcw)
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 4d
The greatest strength of science fiction & fantasy is often their distance from our everyday lives.

That distance makes it safer to ask questions too emotionally charged for rational consideration.

sowhatsyourstory.ca

#storytelling #screenwriting #writing #filmmaking #publishing #theatre
Top: (left) Replicant Roy Batty gives the “tears in rain” soliloquy in this moment from Blade Runner. (right) Genetic engineer Else feeds her creation Dren in this scene from Splice. Bottom: Paul Atreides rallies the Fremen for jihad against the Empire and Harkonnens in this moment from Dune. CAPTION: The greatest strength of science fiction & fantasy is often their distance from our everyday lives. That distance makes it safer to ask questions too emotionally charged for rational consideration, to examine scarring actions by individuals & groups, to understand that individuals are not monoliths but rather angelic demons & demonic angels.
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 5d
Even if I never discover my life’s purpose, I will have lived a wondrous adventure that touched myriad lives.

#fulfillment #purpose #destiny #satisfaction #contentment #peace
Black-and-white photo of a moss-covered angel standing guard over a grave. (Photo by @createdbyrcw)
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 5d
#Dialogue is not conversation, but a distillation.

Every word, every silence, every hesitation conveys meaning & serves a purpose.

sowhatsyourstory.ca

#storytelling #writing #screenwriting #subtext #performance #acting #filmmaking #publishing #theatre
In a messy academic office, Will Hunting (Matt Damon) talks but says little to psychotherapist Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) in this moment from the film Good Will Hunting.
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Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 6d
Love is always enough. But it doesn’t always appear as expected.

It isn’t simply hugging & providing support. It is also asking hard questions & urging change, not just of others, but also of myself.

Love can be limitless & still have boundaries.
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 6d
Baby steps aren’t baby steps to a baby. And whenever any of us try something new, we are babies.

So, rather than allow the final outcome to intimidate us, what if we simply made that first incremental stumble?

I cannot write an article until I have written a word.

youtu.be/hKu7rzd9Dto
Baby Steps Aren't
YouTube video by Randall Willis
youtu.be
createdbyrcw.bsky.social
Randall @createdbyrcw.bsky.social · 6d
Plan all you want. Train all you want.

Prepare all you want. Seek advice all you want.

But at some point, you simply step off the cliff, believing you’ll eventually figure out how to fly.

sowhatsyourstory.ca

#storytelling #screenwriting #writing #filmmaking #publishing #theatre
A tree-lined cliff face overlooking Lake Huron. (Photo by @createdbyrcw)