Why I Want to Amplify Stories from the Margins 

Hi, my name is Lauren. I’m a writing coach, strategic communications consultant, and founder of Lauren Slagter Strategic Communications and Stories from the Margins. I facilitate writing circles, provide editing support to create high-quality written content, and advise on communications strategy for organizations that serve marginalized groups.

I believe when we’re tackling complex social issues, we need to draw from all available sources of expertise, including — and especially — people whose lived experience gives them a first-hand understanding of the systems that so many of us agree are broken. Stories from the Margins is an effort to ensure the stories of marginalized groups have a platform, and I want to share more about drew me to this work.

Read more: What is ‘Strategic Communications’? And Why Do You Need a Plan for It?

I’ve spent my whole life consuming, collecting, and creating stories. One of my earliest storytelling ventures involved pounding on the sticky keys of my grandparents’ typewriter, chronicling the adventures of a mouse named Molly who lived on the shore of Lake Huron and befriended animals in the woods. My literary influences at the time — I was probably 8 years old — included “Stuart Little” and “The Borrowers.”

I’m drawn to the power of stories to connect us, to help us make sense of the world around us, and to cultivate empathy by giving us a glimpse into what life has been like for someone else.

I’m fascinated by the mechanics of good stories, eager to deconstruct and try to reassemble them until I understand what makes them tick. And I’m drawn to the power of stories to connect us, to help us make sense of the world around us, and to cultivate empathy by giving us a glimpse into what life has been like for someone else.

I studied journalism at Grand Valley State University and decided to make a career of writing other people’s stories. Upon embarking on my first reporting job at a small-town newspaper, I was surprised by the stories people wanted to tell me as long as I was holding my little reporter’s notebook. I was allowed to ask people about their finances, their kids, their health, their sexuality. I asked them about their dreams and challenges, what factors influenced the decisions they made, and whether they had any regrets about the outcomes of those decisions. I learned so much from listening to those stories, and I always took seriously the fact that people trusted me to be their messenger. 

Journalism taught me storytelling could be a public service, and I worked hard to present people’s experiences in a way that contributed to our collective understanding of an issue. 

I spent eight years as a journalist, winning public service and enterprise reporting awards from the Associated Press and Michigan and Indiana’s press associations for my coverage of education, housing, and poverty issues. Then I transitioned to a different style of storytelling, working in communications at the University of Michigan’s Poverty Solutions initiative. For the past three years, I’ve translated academic research on the causes and consequences of poverty into actionable steps for policymakers, journalists, service providers, and community organizers. 

From watching how some of the nation’s leading poverty scholars approach their research, I gained a better understanding of the ways broad systems and public policies shape our individual and collective stories. I learned how decades-old stories continue to influence the education, housing, and job opportunities available to us today. 

I learned evidence alone isn’t always persuasive. You need a savvy strategy to make your point relevant to the people who can do something about it. 

I read the research on which interventions show the most promise, and I learned evidence alone isn’t always persuasive. You need a savvy strategy to make your point relevant to the people who can do something about it. 

As I delved deeper into the world of strategic communications, marketing, and how to elevate experts’ opinions in public discussions, I realized there isn’t always a good mechanism for including the stories of marginalized groups in conversations with decision makers.

When tackling complex social issues, we need to draw from all available sources of expertise, including — and especially — people whose lived experience gives them a first-hand understanding of the systems that so many of us agree are broken. 

With Stories from the Margins, writing circles are a first step in empowering people to develop their personal narratives and reflect on their experiences. In addition to facilitating writing circles, I provide writing coaching and editing support to prepare writing circle pieces for publication as op-eds, blog posts, or personal essays. And I offer strategic communications consulting on how to build personal narratives — which research shows are especially persuasive — into a broader campaign to raise awareness of an issue, advocate for change, or highlight your organization’s impact. 

I’m not doing this work alone. I’m interested in collaborating with organizations that serve marginalized groups, communications strategists, journalists, activists, creatives, and storytellers of all kinds. 

Here are four ways we can connect: 

1. Email me at bylaurenslagter@gmail.com to set up a time to discuss your communications needs and project ideas. 
2. Sign up for my newsletter for practical tips on storytelling, strategic communications, and working with journalists.
3. Join the Stories from the Margins community on Instagram and Facebook. 
4. Write with me at the Finding Your Voice Writing Circle, which meets monthly on Zoom. 

Together, let’s tell better stories.