Collaborative Storytelling in Web3
A running post about lowering barriers to web3 storytelling
NFT Storytelling projects are pushing against the norm by inviting everyone, from your uncle to your dog (Eh, maybe not your dog) to be a storyteller in a world that is losing its connection to story. So how does the project leadership push that rock up the hill? How do we get EVERYONE to embrace story?
Let’s start here first: storytelling is, perhaps, the most human of all activities. As far back as 36,000 years ago, we have evidence of humans telling stories (Van Pelt). We are symbolic creatures, the only conscious beings (That we know of, at least–where are you aliens?!) capable of using language and symbol as a means of communicating the totality of human experience. (Not just, “Grab rock. Kill sabertooth. Make fire. Eat meat.”) Simply put, story is what we do. It is biologically coded into what we are, yet culturally coded in service of what we were, are, and can be. But are we losing our awareness of the central importance of narrative? Are we forgetting to tell stories today that are worthwhile, valuable, and good? Are we forgetting our capacity for immense creativity? I think we are. Let’s reclaim this radical, innate urge to tell story. Let’s get human.
So where does that leave web3 narrative projects? I know we all want to believe that communities will somehow spring up out of fresh earth and self-organize in a collaborative way that retains individual autonomy, but that’s a pipe dream–at least as narrative projects (and the web3 space in general) are in their infancy. What we need is education about story-telling and narrative, and well-developed narrative mechanisms that invite, guide, and nurture the general public as an untapped reserve of narrative value.
What are the responsibilities of NFT-storytelling project leadership as we push out into this brave new world? First, there must be a focus on educating people about narrative as a paradoxically natural, yet nuanced human activity. Second is developing storytelling mechanics that make entry into the space easy.
