Blog

The Stories That Work blog features posts by students from the MA in Writing, Rhetoric, and Discourse at DePaul University. Here you’ll find reflections on interesting story projects, as well as reflections on many of the story collections in the Story Database.

A Healthy Amount of Storytelling: How Hospitals Use the Patient Narrative

We looked at more than 30 hospitals’ and healthcare systems’ websites and social media content to better understand how storytelling is used in this industry.

Stories to Spark Prison Reform

Justice and prison reform are needed now more than ever. In this post, we share several collections of personal narratives on the topic of incarceration—told in both writing and in video—and discuss how these projects give voices to the lives prison has affected and build traction in the fight for justice reform.

Gathering Stories into Immersive Interfaces

If your organization wants people to watch, read, or listen to more than just one or two narratives at a time, then the interface you aggregate the stories into is important. We describe and give examples of “immersive interfaces,” interfaces that encourage visitors to linger and immerse themselves in a set stories.

Hashtags and Digital Storytelling

Hashtags are a reliable way for users to find information relevant to their interests. This post surveys both nonprofit and for-profit hashtag campaigns, and offers four tips to nonprofits interested in building hashtags into their storytelling efforts.

Stories About Veterans

The stories of American war veterans are diverse as those who have served. Learn about some of the most compelling collections of veterans’ stories here.

Digital Story Best Practices for Higher Education

What kind of stories are higher-education institutions creating and how are they using them? What principles should guide you as you create and distribute higher-ed stories?