👋 Why hello there, new friend! You’ve found my humble graduate student portfolio and, not only that, the section of my portfolio where a lot of ✨ experimenting ✨ is happening. Let’s catch you up to speed:
- I’m a professional training facilitator at NYU by way of Apple
- I’m passionate about employee advocacy, development, and onboarding
- I’m in graduate school studying digital learning design at NYU Steinhardt
- I’m taking a class on narrative design in learning (📍 you are here)
So this class I’m in, well, we’ve got some reflection assignments to complete throughout the semester. That’s what this is. Literally, right now… this is a reflection assignment. I said this space was going to be a bit experimental in nature because I need to find my voice as a narrator. My goal is to transition from Katie, the narrator, to Katie the Narrator.
There’s a subtle difference there. Did you catch it?
While I’m no grammar queen—there’s a reason I rely heavily on Merriam-Webster, Grammarly, and the almighty APA Style Guide—that comma makes a difference.
Katie, the narrator. Who’s she? She is learning and exploring the act of narration. She is described by the adjective “narrator” because she is, quite simply, one who narrates.
Katie the Narrator. Now her? She’s something else. She is not only one who narrates, she is a storyteller. She wears the epithet of “Narrator” with pride. It’s no longer just an adjective, it’s a badge of honor.
So let’s return to this reflection assignment because there’s an actual question I need to respond to: What is my voice as a narrator and what responsibility does that bring with it?
What is my voice as a narrator? I doubt that my response today will be a complete, accurate picture of what my response would be a few months from now. But let’s give it a shot.
- Approachable but not pandering
- Humorous but not childish
- Intelligent but not overbearing
Maybe that’s more of an aspirational description, but keep that in mind because I think it’s a good segue to the second part of my reflection assignment. Responsibility.
Narrators are biased. Sit with that a moment and then let’s continue.
Knowing that as a narrator I am biased, I can then take that detail and actively try to lean in to or away from that bias. Having the self-awareness to know that my voice is not representative of everyone’s voice is empowering and humbling (note to self: my voice as a narrator should also aspire to be confident but humble).
I don’t think that my responsibility as a narrator is to appeal to all audiences all the time, I think that’s unreasonable. But I do think that it’s my responsibility as a narrator to be aware of and respectful of the fact that mine is not the only voice.
I’m unsure if this will be a popular opinion or not but I also think it’s my responsibility as a narrator to be honest. More specifically, to not mislead audiences with inaccurate details or misinformation. I suppose that depending on the subject matter, this can more of a grey area and I could definitely see this being more appropriate for a non-educational context (think: fiction writing).
I also think it’s my responsibility as a narrator to be engaging. I know that’s such a vague concept, but I don’t want to get in the mindset that if I’m not able to hold an audience’s attention it’s their fault and not my own. (There is obviously some grey area, but let’s not blame others for our own faults is perhaps closer to what I’m trying to say here.)
Alright then, did you get all that? Here’s a quick summary for you, a TL,DR if you will.
I’m exploring what it means to be a narrator and I believe it’s my responsibility to establish trust and rapport with my audience by being honest, approachable, and humorous.
You’re welcome to stick around. This space will slowly fill out with more reflection assignments and class projects that you can read through later.
Thanks for stopping by!