Bring Your Story to the Stage
$90
This class is for anyone ready to take a personal 5-minute story and actively shape it for an audience. You’ll work hands-on with one story. Drafting, refining, and testing it aloud. We’ll focus on structure, pacing, and point of view, helping you find the spine of the story and decide what belongs in this particular version of the story and what doesn’t. You’ll practice starting strong, building momentum, and landing the story with intention.
Taught by BACKFENCE Storytelling producers and hosts Frayn Masters and Ash Allen, this class is ideal if you’ve taken Small Stories, Big Meaning or already have a personal story you’re curious to bring forward—whether for a stage, or simply to hear it land out loud.
Rather than “performing,” this class emphasizes shaping a vulnerable narrative. You’ll receive demonstrations and feedback on mic use, voice, presence, and timing in a supportive room, with clear guidance.
By the end of the workshop, you’ll have:
• A shaped draft you can continue developing
• Practical tools for revising and rehearsing
• Greater confidence telling a personal story aloud
• A clearer sense of how you want to show up onstage
You set the pace. Participation is encouraged but never forced. The goal is clarity, connection, and momentum—not polish or performance.
strong>Access Program
We want our classes and seminars to be accessible to everyone, regardless of income and background. We understand that our tuition structure can present obstacles for some people. Our Access Program offers writing class and seminar tuitions at a reduced rate. Most classes have at least one access spot available.
Please apply here for access rate tuition. Contact Susan Moore at susan@literary-arts.org if you have questions.
Liaison position
Every in-person class and seminar at Literary Arts has one liaison position. Liaisons perform specific duties for each class meeting. If you are a liaison for a class or seminar, the full amount of your tuition is covered by Literary Arts.
Apply here for the liaison position.
Ash Allen
Originally from Mississippi, Ash is a critter-obsessed, barefoot tomboy turned comedian and storyteller. Her work is rooted in red clay hills, kudzu-lined highways, and the feral tenderness of the woods she grew up running through—blending sharp comedy with emotional honesty and a deep sense of place.
A repeat Moth StorySLAM winner, 2025 Best of Portland Comedy finalist, and one of Willamette Weekly’s 2026 Funniest Five, Ash shares tall-yet-true stories on stages across the country. She hosts the weekly storytelling radio show Porch Hang and co-hosts ROY G BIV, highlighting the best queer comedy Portland—and beyond—has to offer. In addition to performing, Ash teaches and coaches storytelling with BACKFENCE Storytelling and recently produced and facilitated the sold-out King Tides Storytelling Retreat on the Washington Coast.
Frayn Masters
Frayn Masters really loves listening to and digging into stories, she is endlessly curious and interested in the messiness of being human. Through producing hundreds of stories she has witnessed the following paradox of storytelling… that though we might think the biggest stories are near death and the like, it turns out that investigating almost forgettable minutiae can uncover some of the biggest shifts, laughter, tears, vulnerability, and decisions that form high stakes stories. It all hinges on the context of one’s life at that moment.
Frayn is the artistic director and host of the award-winning storytelling series, BACKFENCE Storytelling, and co-host and co-creator of the super delightful 29 minute conversational storytelling podcast,BACKFENCE Unhinged. Frayn is also developing a podcast and talk show about loneliness with co-creator and co-host Beth Lisick called Let’s Get Lonely!
She was voted Best Storyteller by Willamette Week's readers and is also a former producer and host for The Moth. Through a storied 20+ year background of improv, sketch comedy, writing, acting, and storytelling, she specializes in working with 1:1 with CEOs, Executive Directors, Creative Directors, designers, athletes, scientists, formerly awkward podcast and video hosts, funeral directors, and tech leaders for all manner of speaking engagements. She also custom builds workshops that breath vulnerability, fresh air, and excitement into words and performance.
