Story State: Fostering Innovative Storytelling is for anyone who wants to learn more about the power of stories. The entertaining and educational event invites writers, filmmakers, communication practitioners, and others who can help the audience understand how to craft better stories and use stories to achieve their communication goals. The event culminates in awards in three categories (written, oral, and film) for college and university students from across the state. Story State is open to the public, and we hope that students, scholars, communication practitioners, artists, and community members will join us for this and future Story State events.

Special Thanks to Those Who Made Story State 2023 Happen

Story State 2023 would not have happened without the support, time, and effort of many people. We would like to thank some of those people below: 

Terry Likes and the Communication Department at Mississippi State University 

The 2023 Story State Planning Committee members: Victoria Bailey, Anna Blount, Josh Foreman (Chair), Tonya Hays, and Kevin Williams

Kala LeGrand 

Matthew McClung, who built the Story State website 

John Forde and Steve Soltis, who years ago hatched the idea of a story-focused event at Mississippi State University, and brought the "New Narrative" festival into existence. 

Our presenters and their organizations

Sid Salter, Karyn Brown, and the Office of Public Affairs at Mississippi State University 

The Library of Congress, Internet Archive, Creative Commons, New York Public Library, Boston Public Library, US Department of Agriculture, and Rijksmuseum