REPRESENTATIVE (British): London Stories Out Loud, this is Lauren speaking, how may I help you?
MEGAN (British): Hello, I’m calling to enquire about your upcoming storytelling event in February. Have I phoned the right place?
REPRESENTATIVE: Yes. We host a quarterly event where a few presenters will tell a story out loud to our audience. Are you interested in attending?
MEGAN: Um, yes, but I’m also interested in finding out how I can become one of the, uh, storytellers. I mean, I’d like to participate.
REPRESENTATIVE: Sure, I’d be happy to help with you that. First, let’s discuss our upcoming event. Now, it’s actually going to be in March, not February. It was originally scheduled for January 28th, but we’ve had to postpone it twice because of conflicts. So, it’ll actually be March 3rd, now.
MEGAN: Got it. Is it in the same place as the last one?
REPRESENTATIVE: No. Each one is held at a different location around town. Either, uh, a pub or a restaurant and occasionally in a public space like a park.
MEGAN: Where will the next one be held?
REPRESENTATIVE: The George and Dragon, which is a pub located at 457 Central. Now, take note, the pub used to be located at 245 Hayden, but it’s moved to the new location. Wouldn’t want you to end up in the wrong place.
MEGAN: Great, thank you. Can I buy tickets ahead of time?
REPRESENTATIVE: You can reserve tickets but you’ll have to pay for them at the door on the night of the event. You need to pick up the tickets at least 30 minutes before the performance. There’s always a line of people waiting to get tickets because we sell out. So, at 10 minutes before the show starts, we start selling reserved tickets that haven’t been claimed, so you’d be smart to show up early and make sure you’ll get in.
MEGAN: How much are they? I’ll only need one.
REPRESENTATIVE: They are £10 and the show lasts two hours. Well, no, it lasts one and a half hours.
MEGAN: How many speakers are there?
REPRESENTATIVE: Three plus the host, so that makes four altogether.
MEGAN: That sounds great, thank you for the information. So, how do I sign up to be one of the presenters?
REPRESENTATIVE: Well, that takes more time. It’s a process, actually, that requires an application. Not everyone who applies is chosen.
MEGAN: How do I apply?
REPRESENTATIVE: The first thing you have to do is mail your story to us.
MEGAN: My story is 1000 words, is that OK?
REPRSENTATIVE: Actually, we want them to be between 10 and 12 pages which is about 2000 words, minimum. So, you’d have to lengthen it a bit.
MEGAN: OK, I can do that.
REPRESENTATIVE: Once we receive the stories, a panel of four staff reviews all of them and narrows them down to the top three. After that, we contact each writer and go through edits with them.
MEGAN: How long does that process take?
REPRESENTATIVE: The stories need to be submitted two months before the event. We contact the three chosen writers one month before the event. Then, edits take about two weeks. The last two weeks are for the writes to rehearse.
MEGAN: Great, so obviously I don’t have time to submit to the next event, but what about the next one after that?
REPRESENTATIVE: Of course. You can email your submission to us at our homepage by April 15th. Make sure to include your full name and contact details in the email.
MEGAN: Sounds great, I definitely will. Also, I’d like to reserve tickets for the upcoming event. I actually need two now that I think about it.
REPRESENTATIVE: Sure, no problem. What’s your name?
MEGAN: Megan. M-E-G-A-N. Archer. A-R-C-H-E-R.
REPRESENTATIVE: Got it. I’ve put you down for two tickets. Just show them your ID and you can pay for the tickets at the pub. They’ll cost you £20 total.
MEGAN: Thank you for all of the information. I’m looking forward to it.