One evening in September 1997, Derek Powazek gathered together several dozen friends and held an evening of storytelling in his native San Francisco. Growing out of his web project, the {fray}, this public event has been repeated each of the past three years. Last year, for the first time, another city (Grand Rapids, Michigan) hosted a Fray Day. This year the event is going global, with Fray Day events planned for Austin, Boston, Burlington (Vermont), Chicago, Cincinnati, Grand Rapids, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Washington D.C., as well as Kyoto, Japan, and Melbourne, Australia.
In a well established tradition, each event will feature scheduled storytellers and musicians Ð including some of the writers who have contributed to the web site Ð as well as an open mic so that members of the audience can participate. Anyone can take the stage, says Powazek, "as long as their stories are true and personal, their telling is enthusiastic, and they take less than five minutes."
Fray Day's inspiration, the {fray}, is also focused on first-person narrative and has received dozens of accolades since it helped pioneer personal storytelling on the web. Recently, the site was nominated for three Webby Awards, and won the bronze award for "Best Storytelling Project" in the NewMedia Invision Awards.
Powazek is a passionate believer in communities: "Fray Day is about bringing people together. Personal stories are a thread that connects everyone. That's what Fray Day is all about." He has also become somewhat of an expert on the subject of communities on the web, having recently published Design for Community (New Riders, 2001), a guidebook for those seeking to add community features to their web sites.
My first exposure to Fray's brand of storytelling was at Fray Café, a "mini-Fray Day" held at this year's South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas. Best known for its music festival, SXSW also hosts a separate Interactive conference, which features experts on the Internet economy and web culture. Since many of Fray's audience would already be attending, and since most people don't live in the Bay Area and therefore don't have access to the annual Fray Day events, Powazek decided he'd bring Fray Day to them.
Fray Café was a resounding success, and even included a marriage proposal, though not the first. At Fray Day in Grand Rapids last year, a participant became the first to use his story to propose marriage. In Austin, though, the tables were turned, with Courtney Skott proposing marriage to her boyfriend Lane Becker. Amid the cheers and whoops, he said Yes.
Powazek is thrilled by the continued, now global, expansion of Fray Day. "I'm completely stoked," he said. "People everywhere have stories to tell, and to watch Fray Day blossom all over the globe is thrilling. I only wish I could attend all the events!"
Look for an event in Toronto in September of 2002. And if you're interested in telling your story, or just helping out, please contact me.
Fray Day 5
the {fray}
Derek Powazek
Design for Community