Invite Chris to Speak!

Talking with college students

What will Chris talk about?

Do you want to be a great communicator? Would you like to better understand why, and how, certain stories have the power to profoundly move people? There is awesome power in understanding the fundamental elements of great storytelling. Give Chris just one hour and you will never look at the structure of stories—or life—quite the same again.

And Chris doesn’t just talk—he shows. Using hundreds of images, presented with candid wit and insight, Chris unravels the timeless wisdom behind great storytelling—from Aristotle to Spielberg, from "Gilgamesh" to "Little Miss Sunshine".

Chris not only shows why the best stories resonate with us so deeply, he also teaches how anyone can master, and benefit from using, the tools of the classic three-act structure—and he makes it fun! He offers four talks, each customizable to your group:

1. How Stories Offer Meaning To Our Lives. Designed for a general audience, Chris considers stories as a sort of “flight simulator” for our lives, exploring how films provide a safe environment for us to vicariously experience, and grow from, the challenges and trauma characters face.

2. Storytelling for Writers. An intellectual analysis of the elements of a well-structured story that provides practical tools to writers, students, or anyone who aspires to understand how to craft great stories.

3. Storytelling for Professionals. In this shifting, fast-paced world of short attention spans, she who tells the best story—wins. Mastering the timeless power of three-act structure in business and marketing helps you design and control your own narrative, makes you a superior communicator, and gives you the competitive edge.

4. Storytelling for Kids. A simple approach to teaching children the basic elements of story structure by using advice from the team at Pixar.

Chris is also available to facilitate lively, interactive workshops.

Learn much more here. Or please contact Lisa Millis to find out about Chris's availability.

Johnny Knoxville, Matt Lucas, Chris, and director
Jonas Akerlund entertain the audience at SXSW

MY NEW NOVEL NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE!


IT’S FINALLY HERE!

After eight years, a studio film option, lots of revision, and lots more whiskey, my second novel is now available for purchase.

God & California is the story of Norbert Sherbert, a wounded Iraq war veteran, and Wilberforce Wendell, a defrocked Catholic priest, who set off together from the Adirondack Mountains of New York State to deliver a pink, 1975 Cadillac Eldorado convertible to Monterey, California. Along the way, they will break all Ten Commandments on a mission to provoke God into a conversation.

I’m psyched to share this book with you and hope you’ll buy a copy to discover why the Hollywood Reporter calls my writing “singularly weird,” and acclaimed Detroit poet, M.L. Liebler, says I’m “one of America’s most original, hip young writers.”


Also… great news! Jonas Akerlund, director of “Small Apartments” (my debut film from Sony Pictures) is now attached to direct my screen adaptation of God & California.

You can buy it now on AMAZON

Read the entire first chapter HERE