Getting Ready for the Rogue - Its Multi-tasking

Getting ready for the Rogue - what does that mean?

You are just going to tell stories, right? How much could there be to do?

Let me explain - this is a "fringe" festival and while the Rogue publicizes the over-all schedule it is up to each performers to put some effort into additional promotion - so there will be an audience for your show.

So -

* I have designed and produced fliers to distribute and programs for the events themselves.

* Made a trip to Staples for the duplicating

* Written press releases and emailed them

* Entered blog notices (http://www.roguetales.blogspot.org/)

* Called folks in Fresno who can help get the word out.

* Researched for and worked on a couple of additional stories.

* Made and labeled cds to sell

* Assembled the stuff I need to take for the performance from the lapel mic to my banner.

You get it - all the administrative and clerical tasks that are needed to back-up a performance. I have a staff of 1000s and they are all ME.

I am hoping that stuff is out of the way now so that tomorrow I can pack and get all my personal gear together.

Multi-tasking is an essential life skill. Fortunately I have been well-trained at it.

Multi-tasking is a mother's survival skill. Thinking for several other people, of different ages. Forecasting what it is essential to have in your pocketbook in case of an emergency - from a band-aid to candy "life-savers" and all the stuff in-between. Being a mother of three was my first training ground for handling logistics.

In the late 1970s I had a job on the national staff of the League of Women Voters of the US. During those three years I learned advanced organization skills from the "masters '. Let me tell you - League women can predict and plan and make it happen. The League members and staff I worked with are the role models for women who could run large corporations and keep their homes going while they organized local school systems and held a poltician's feet to the fire. I loved it and soaked it all in.

Every bit of that experience serves me well as a storyteller.