Storytelling, the language art that pre-dates written history, is now served by two organizations, both headquartered in Jonesborough, Tennessee where the American storytelling revival was jump-started by the first National Storytelling Festival in 1973.
The success of that first festival led to the founding of the National Association for the Preservation and Perpetuation of Storytelling (NAPPS), which changed its name to the National Storytelling Association (NSA) in 1994.
In 1998, NSA, in an effort to better serve the needs of the diverse storytelling community, divided into two separate organizations, National Storytelling Network (NSN) and the International Storytelling Center (ISC).
Both organizations are dedicated to advancing the art of storytelling - as a performing art, teaching aid, and cultural transformation process. Both SFI and NSN jointly own the annual National Storytelling Festival, and ISC produces the event.
NSN is a member driven organization, with a Board of Directors elected by members from seven regions across America. It offers direct services, publications and educational opportunities to several thousand individuals, local storytelling guilds and associations. These services are designed to improve the quality of storytelling at all levels - in entertainment venues, in classrooms, organizations, medical fields and wherever storytelling can make a contribution to quality of life.