C. MERRITT
- 11
- reviews
- 7
- helpful votes
- 29
- ratings
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Long Story Short
- The Only Storytelling Guide You'll Ever Need
- By: Margot Leitman
- Narrated by: Margot Leitman
- Length: 4 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,165
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,033
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Story4 out of 5 stars 1,028
Did you ever wish you could tell a story that leaves others spellbound? Storytelling teacher and champion Margot Leitman will show you how! With a fun, irreverent, and infographic approach, this guide breaks a story into concrete components with ways to improve content, structure, emotional impact, and delivery through personal anecdotes, relatable examples, and practical exercises.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Draw in your audience by telling stories
- By A. Yoshida on 10-27-16
- Long Story Short
- The Only Storytelling Guide You'll Ever Need
- By: Margot Leitman
- Narrated by: Margot Leitman
Margot helps you tell your stories... better.
Reviewed: 01-05-21
I found this one of the best storytelling audible books I have ever listened to, as Margot is profoundly expert at her material AND her delivery. She's a storyteller telling a story about how to tell stories better. Practical and just perfect.
I am starting this all over again to work on her directed exercises. I also think this will help my fictional work too, though Ms. Leitman explicitly states that is NOT her aim in this book.
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Frenchman's Creek
- By: Daphne du Maurier
- Narrated by: John Castle
- Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 637
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 565
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 561
Eventually Dona lands in remote Navron, looking for peace of mind in its solitary woods and hidden creeks. She finds the passion her spirit craves in the love of a daring French pirate who is being hunted by all of Cornwall. Together, they embark upon a quest rife with danger and glory, one which bestows upon Dona the ultimate choice: sacrifice her lover to certain death or risk her own life to save him
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5 out of 5 stars
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Very sexy without the details
- By Edwillmom on 05-05-18
- Frenchman's Creek
- By: Daphne du Maurier
- Narrated by: John Castle
Good Story... GREAT NARRATOR!
Reviewed: 03-11-20
Damn, John Castle brings this story absolutely alive. Stellar narration, he affects compelling accents and characterization. I'll seek his narrated projects out.
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Legend
- A Harrowing Story from the Vietnam War of One Green Beret's Heroic Mission to Rescue a Special Forces Team Caught Behind Enemy Lines
- By: Eric Blehm
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,552
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,410
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Story5 out of 5 stars 1,408
In Legend, acclaimed best-selling author Eric Blehm takes as his canvas the Vietnam War as seen through a single mission that occurred on May 2, 1968. A 12-man Special Forces team had been covertly inserted into a small clearing in the jungles of neutral Cambodia - where US forces were forbidden to operate. Their objective, just miles over the Vietnam border, was to collect evidence that proved the North Vietnamese Army was using the Cambodian sanctuary as a major conduit for supplying troops and materiel to the south via the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
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5 out of 5 stars
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awesome
- By Jacob on 11-13-15
- Legend
- A Harrowing Story from the Vietnam War of One Green Beret's Heroic Mission to Rescue a Special Forces Team Caught Behind Enemy Lines
- By: Eric Blehm
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
Honored soldier but lacks context.
Reviewed: 07-10-19
I enjoyed this book, but it lacks broader context. Roy's bravery is startlingly clear. Whilst I appreciate the book, I crave more information about SOG, the conflicts in Laos and Cambodia, and more information about SOG missions. Without this context, the book in uni-dimensional and too narrowly focused.
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Indestructible
- One Man's Rescue Mission That Changed the Course of WWII
- By: John R. Bruning
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
- Length: 17 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,242
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,145
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Story5 out of 5 stars 1,143
In this remarkable WWII story by New York Times best-selling author John R. Bruning, a renegade American pilot fights against all odds to rescue his family - imprisoned by the Japanese - and revolutionizes modern warfare along the way. From the knife fights and smuggling runs of his youth to his fiery days as a pioneering naval aviator, Paul Irving "Pappy" Gunn played by his own set of rules and always survived on his wits and fists. But when he fell for a conservative Southern belle, her love transformed him from a wild and reckless airman to a cunning entrepreneur.
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5 out of 5 stars
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You will love Pappy's story
- By A. L. DeWitt on 11-15-16
- Indestructible
- One Man's Rescue Mission That Changed the Course of WWII
- By: John R. Bruning
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
fascinating history but told melodramatically.
Reviewed: 07-10-19
The history of Pappy Gunn is riveting. Bruning's telling is fiercely melodramatic and damn near maudlin. Personally, I'd have preferred less melodrama, but your taste may differ. I enjoyed hearing about such a diversely skilled pilot, soldier and engineer. I love how it weaves together the context of pre-ww2, ww2 proper and post-ww2 tales.
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The Soul of a New Machine
- By: Tracy Kidder
- Narrated by: Ben Sullivan
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 670
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 580
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 579
Computers have changed since 1981, when Tracy Kidder memorably recorded the drama, comedy, and excitement of one company's efforts to bring a new microcomputer to market. What has not changed is the feverish pace of the high-tech industry, the go-for-broke approach to business that has caused so many computer companies to win big (or go belly up), and the cult of pursuing mind-bending technological innovations.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Reading this book changed my life
- By Timothy Knox on 08-12-16
- The Soul of a New Machine
- By: Tracy Kidder
- Narrated by: Ben Sullivan
About one machine
Reviewed: 10-29-18
This tells what happens in the creation of ONE computer. It was complete, it gave a thorough breakdown of how it happened, and it was interesting. It didn't describe other computer development.
It is hard to extrapolate any useful lessons from this account. I liked it, but I would have LOVED if it had posited how this story could be used to guide new development or teams. That would have been more compelling.
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Dragonsong: Harper Hall Trilogy, Volume 1
- By: Anne McCaffrey
- Narrated by: Sally Darling
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,890
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,017
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Story5 out of 5 stars 4,033
Dragonsong is the spellbinding tale of Menolly of Half Circle Hold, a brave young girl who flees her seaside village and discovers the legendary fire lizards of Pern. All her life, Menolly has longed to learn the ancient secrets of the Harpers, the master musicians of Harper Hall. When her stern father denies her the chance to make her dream come true, Menolly runs away from home. Hiding in a cave by the sea, she finds nine magical fire lizards who join her on a breathtaking journey to Harper Hall.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Grandma tells a story
- By Trisandra on 07-22-16
- Dragonsong: Harper Hall Trilogy, Volume 1
- By: Anne McCaffrey
- Narrated by: Sally Darling
Loved this in my teens, didn't like it now.
Reviewed: 08-20-18
The protagonist is whiny beyond description. "Oh my lot in life. Sigh."
I guess I responded to this as a teen, but as an adult it exhausting to listen to.
(go back in time, teen-rating: 4 stars, 3 stars, 4 stars)
And the story abruptly ends. It's a trilogy, I know that,
but I can't find it in me to subject myself to the whiny tone
for 2 more books just to find out what happens.
The performer really accentuates this whiny tone. Don't know if I should reward or detract for this.
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2 people found this helpful
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Save the Cat!
- The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need
- By: Blake Snyder
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 5 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,820
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,468
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,455
Here's what started the phenomenon: This book has been a best seller for over 15 years and has been used by screenwriters around the world! Blake Snyder tells all in this fast, funny, and candid look inside the movie business. Save the Cat is just one of many ironclad rules for making your ideas more marketable and your script more satisfying.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Don't waste your time
- By Amazon Customer on 02-05-20
- Save the Cat!
- The Last Book on Screenwriting You'll Ever Need
- By: Blake Snyder
- Narrated by: George Newbern
Excellent intro to storytelling
Reviewed: 08-06-18
I bought the kindle and audible version of this, because I figured my absorption would improve with two modes of delivery. Why? Because this primer on storytelling is great. Does it preach formulaic storytelling? It does. But for me the process of Learn the Rules, apply them successfully, and ONLY THEN break them is my personal process.
We all learn differently. I prefer structure then breakout. If you learn this way, this primer on storytelling is great. McKee's Story is a broader study, with more background and history. Save The Cat! is succinct. Less broad history and more procedural instructions. Also Blake Snyder is teaching a narrower type of storytelling, specifically for Film. McKee's can be applied more broadly, although it too focuses mostly on Screenwriting.
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2 people found this helpful
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Infinite
- By: Jeremy Robinson
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
- Length: 10 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 24,324
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22,454
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22,420
The Galahad, a faster-than-light spacecraft, carries 50 scientists and engineers on a mission to prepare Kepler 452b, Earth's nearest habitable neighbor at 1400 light years away. With Earth no longer habitable and the Mars colony slowly failing, they are humanity's best hope. After 10 years in a failed cryogenic bed - body asleep, mind awake - William Chanokh's torture comes to an end as the fog clears, the hatch opens, and his friend and fellow hacker, Tom, greets him...by stabbing a screwdriver into his heart. This is the first time William dies.
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5 out of 5 stars
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a rather complex science fiction story
- By Midwestbonsai on 12-26-17
- Infinite
- By: Jeremy Robinson
- Narrated by: R.C. Bray
Better than general fare sci-fi.
Reviewed: 04-05-18
If you could sum up Infinite in three words, what would they be?
Fun and thoughtful.
What about R.C. Bray’s performance did you like?
Excellent voice performance. Not distracting in any way.
Any additional comments?
This books avoids some of the more tired aspects of current science fiction. I like Military Sci-Fi as much as the next one, but I like narratives that ask a little bit more and explore ideas that are deeper than "grunts at war in space." Infinite will linger longer than other novels I've listened to lately.
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The Launch Pad
- Inside Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's Most Exclusive School for Startups
- By: Randall Stross
- Narrated by: René Ruiz
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,010
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 863
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 863
Twice a year in the heart of Silicon Valley, a small investment firm called Y Combinator selects an elite group of young entrepreneurs from around the world for three months of intense work and instruction. Their brand-new two- or three-person start-ups are given a seemingly impossible challenge: to turn a raw idea into a viable business, fast.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Soothing
- By Andrew on 12-30-15
- The Launch Pad
- Inside Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's Most Exclusive School for Startups
- By: Randall Stross
- Narrated by: René Ruiz
No conclusions
Reviewed: 04-02-18
A good recap of one class of Y Combinator, but no broad conclusions about efficacy or methodologies for innovators to follow.
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1 person found this helpful
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The Dispatcher
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Zachary Quinto
- Length: 2 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 84,378
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77,450
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 77,234
Zachary Quinto - best known for his role as the Nimoy-approved Spock in the recent Star Trek reboot and the menacing, power-stealing serial killer, Sylar, in Heroes - brings his well-earned sci-fi credentials and simmering intensity to this audio-exclusive novella from master storyteller John Scalzi. One day, not long from now, it becomes almost impossible to murder anyone - 999 times out of a thousand, anyone who is intentionally killed comes back. How? We don't know.
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5 out of 5 stars
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IT'S HARD TO GET MYSTICAL ABOUT YOUR JOB
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 10-05-16
- The Dispatcher
- By: John Scalzi
- Narrated by: Zachary Quinto
Good story, some explanation would have been nice
Reviewed: 02-16-18
Core conceit/premise is left fundamentally unexplained. So it’s more speculative fiction than science fiction. But if you accept this premise, the story is truly excellent.
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