As Vivek described it on this episode perfectly well, attending a stuttering conference made him feel like Stutter Bond with a license to stutter. If you stutter, you’re not alone.

Music used on this episode:
Oslodum 2004 – DJ Dolores
Pepito by KarmaHackeR

Vivek’s presentation at the conference

If you stutter, you’re not alone

Some fun at the ISA conference

So how was the conference?

The future of ISA – part 1

The future of ISA – part 2

Another thank you to David Resnick for the cool beatboxing used on this episode. David was also recently interviewed on KOMU.

Check out this article about Stutter Social also spreading awareness.

Links mentioned on this episode:
Indian Stammering Association website and blog

And now a message from Hiten Vyas!

Read all about it in this New York Times article.

It strikes me as odd that a teacher would try to discourage a stuttering student from speaking in class. Most stutterers I know, myself included, would clam up. Not Phil. Way to go, brotha!

Links mentioned on this episode:

Indian Stammering Association

Canadian Stuttering Association Conference

Ti-Ger comic – How to pick up women in a bar, club, etc. when you stutter

StutterCast

Krishna’s videos from the British Stammering Association Conference

Links mentioned on today’s episode:
David Alpuche’s photograpy
The Stutterer ebook

Music used on today’s show:
Symmetrical Tree by Binary Pulse
Halogen by Redux

It’s available in epub format which can be read on many devices such as the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and the Sony Reader. You can also read ebooks on your desktop and laptop using free software such as Calibre and Stanza. I am also making it available in mobi format for viewing on the Kindle.

You’re probably wondering about the cover I created. This ebook is one of three releases I’m making available to the world. I choose classic novels in the public domain such as Moby Dick and illustrate covers for them. My schtick is I design the covers using references of today’s digital culture. I explain it all in a blog post named, Classic books, new covers, on my personal website. You will also find a list of the other books there.

Please note that this book has nothing at all to do with stuttering, however, in the spirit of fun, I am releasing this ebook’s to coincide with this year’s International Stuttering Awareness Day.

Download in epub format to read on almost anything
Download in mobi format to read on the Kindle

Episode #117. On this episode, I share a recording of a conversation about becoming comfortable with stuttering openly and how it makes you appear more authentic. I also play some feedback explaining how Twitter can be a way to describe how it feels like to stutter.

Links mentioned:
Speak Out — Stuttering Support Group, Stratford, Ontario
2011 Canadian Stuttering Association Conference

Music used on today’s episode:
Deep Performance by Gradient
Disco High by UltraCat
Disco Lounge by Kevin MacLeod
Pinball Spring by Video Classica

I Skype into an NSA support group meeting and chat a bit about, well, stuttering! We also talk about the great idea of hosting a panel after a showing of The King’s Speech.

I speak with BSA Chief Executive, Norbert Lieckfeldt, about the history, present and future of the British Stammering Association and his recent, excellent interview with Colin Firth, star of the movie, The King’s Speech.

The King’s Speech is a book as well! Of course, I read it and of course, I loved it. It’s written by Lionel Logue’s grandson, Mark, who – picture it – your parents always had these pictures of King George VI around and one day your aunt tells you about a box of your grandfather’s things she just found in her home. You open up the box and inside are all his notes, journals and mementos of his treating and friendship with the King. All these were used to rewrite the screenplay which became the movie we love today.

The book is not “the book version” of the movie. It’s a historical count of the friendship. How life was like for the two men growing up, how Logue came to move to England, how the two met, and so on. A fascinating “background story” to the movie which, as of writing, I’ve already seen twice. Can’t wait to see it again and I am in trouble once it’s out on DVD!

The BBC posted a short video of Mark Logue showing some of his grandfather’s mementos (hat tip to Steven of the BSA for alerting of the video).

On this day in 2007*, I posted the first episode of Stuttering is Cool. I didn’t think my podcast idea would last 4 episodes. And here today is episode 100! To celebrate this spiffy number, I’ve asked you to share your thoughts on stuttering’s affect on things like self-confidence, self-esteem, self-worth and self-image. And how it also drives us to overcome it all and live awesomely. And I received over an hour’s worth of fantastic stories. Thank you! My show would be nothing without you, my listeners.

List of stories and wisdom:

5:59 – People can learn to be confident by Hiten Vyas of stutteringhub.com

14:37 – Stuttering in college by Sarah Bryant

16:32 – Self-esteem in the social and intellectual world by Tom Weidig of The Stuttering Brain

19:19 – Toastmasters speech by Rebecca

24:17 – Speech as a fundamental aspect of life by Robert R. Best

28:15 – Social punishment and stuttering as a secret weapon by David Freidman

32:44 – Body language and feedback by Carolina Ayala

35:08 – Quality friends and stages in life by Carlo Silipo

37:22 – Disclosing during a first date by Rob, a.k.a. Box of Clocks

39:10 – Control over stuttering by Jaan Pill

40:12 – Support systems and the NSA by Tamara Williams

41:59 – Holding yourself back by Brendan O’Carroll

44:24 – “The Look” and maintaining eye contact by Dan Hudock

46:55 – Making new friends and acquaintances by Krishna

50:13 – Fear of stuttering and limiting yourself  by Pam Mertz, Make Room For The Stuttering

54:27 – Stuttering is a positive thing by Prolific Elvis

57:28 – Buying bus fare by Stephen Paterson

1:00:31 – Comfort Zones by Grant Meredith

1:04:12 – Being an effective communicator despite stuttering by Greg Snyder, stuttering.me

Music used in this episode:

CCmixter.org by Code

Beat 1 by Pradio

Stuttering Blues by The Insomniacs. iTunes link.

Another Another Day by Teru

Upright bass noodling throughout this episode by cool cat Jean Finstad who plays in a number of bands in the Washington DC area.

December 1 update: I received some awesome audio after I posted the above and I just had to post it for you asap! The first is from Glenn Schmelzle of Marketing What’s New. Glenn doesn’t stutter but shares with us his gratitude for having learned so much from listening to all the different perspectives on this episode. The second piece of audio comes from fellow stutterer and Special Olympic athlete, Daniel Smrokowski, of the Special Chronicles podcast. Daniel shares his thoughts on stuttering’s affect on self-confidence.

Don’t forget to check out ti-ger.org and participate in the community.

*Arg! I miscalculated. It was November 25th. Darn it. Not the 27th.

Stotter, or Stammers in English, is a documentary about Jef, an 18 year old with autism spectrum disorder who is struggling with his stuttering. After years of trying, Jef gives it one more try with a speech therapist who also stutters. In part one of this episode, I speak with the documentary filmmaker, Joke Nyssen about the story behind her film. Send an e-mail to sophimages@skynet.be for information on ordering a DVD copy.

Part two takes place later in the day when I’m out with my friends on International Stuttering Awareness Day. We talk about how we deal with the frustration of stuttering.

Disclosing is the best thing a us stutterers can do when meeting people for the first time. Be it in a group or one-on-one. It puts both you and the person(s) you’re talking to at ease. After knowing this and experiencing this first hand numerous times, then why, pray tell, am I still nervous about disclosing? Join me in my noisy car (I left the windows rolled down) as I ponder for a reason and share a tip about giving a confident handshake.

Meanwhile, Stephen from Ireland returns in a Skype chat as we ponder the best way to bring up someone else’s stuttering when you meet them for the first time.

Stotters is the name of a Belgian documentary about Jef, an 18 year old with with autism spectrum disorder who is struggling to overcome his stuttering. After many failed attempts to conquer his stuttering, this film documents Jef’s last attempt but this time with his speech therapist who also struggled with stuttering. After watching the trailer, it looks to be quite the touching film!

Related links:

• Facebook fan page
• Sophimages films
• Joke Nyssen, director

This episode is a variety show! I splice clips from a few chats over Skype talking about a variety of topics from dating and stuttering, the life cycle of support groups, BSA London Open Day 2010, the effectiveness of speech tools and getting a little surprise at work.

Links mentioned on this episode:

• SpeakEasy Queensland
• Ed Balls at BSA London Open Day 2010
• Miro’s website MyStutteringTreatment.com

Music in today’s episode:

• Beat 1 by Pradio
• Cafe Connection by Morgantj
• Dizee ke Peeche by Martinibomb

Finally! The theatrical trailer for “The King’s Speech” starring Colin Firth as King Geroge VI and Geoffrey Rush as Lionel Logue, the royal eccentric speech therapist. I noticed one line was slightly changed from the movie ;) Just watching this gets me on the edge of my seat. Can’t wait to see it again. For details about the movie’s gala premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, listen to episode 95 of my podcast.

International trailer released in October 2010:

I speak with two fellow stutterers on how they use stuttering to their advantage when meeting women. And you know, it isn’t as difficult as people may think. Topics include online dating, offline dating, your strengths and weaknesses and a touch of attitude – it’s all part of the dating game.

Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert

Still on my NSA Conference high, I play the full version of my chat with Steve Kaufman about the NSA Nation and his first time attending the conference a few years ago.  We also hear from a non-stuttering SLP’s first impressions of the conference.

Today’s episode is a long one! It’s an audio collage presenting highlights of my experiences at the NSA Conference in July 2010. My very first time attending! Join me and two of my fellow stuttering friends, Rebecca (also her first) and Carolina (her 4th, not her 3rd as mentioned in the episode) and as we bus it to Cleveland, Ohio to attend this awesome event. Find out about stuttering at customs, hear from some of our new friends, SLP students voluntarily stuttering, what I shared at the open mike, stuttering etiquette, the creation of the Stuttertini and much more!

• My photos of the NSA Conference
• I Heart My Stutterer t-shirt
• Pam‘s Ti-Ger tattoo (who is Ti-Ger?)
• Four Friends website
• Dr-Nina-G.com
• National Stuttering Association Facebook fan page
• Stuttering Experts Gather In Cleveland (from WCPN)

Video by @jeanfinstad We’re Not Afraid’ practice for closing ceremony

2010 NSA Closing Ceremony Video

P.S. I am forever grateful to the NSA Conference organizers, volunteers, stuttering community and the super amazing staff at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel (who gave us the time we needed to stutter out our words without rushing us or finishing our sentences) for putting on such an AWESOME time!

Here is an article from page 92 of a 1940 issue of Popular Science magazine – The Cure for Stammering. I haven’t had a chance to read it yet so apologies in advance if it’s turns out to be completely and utterly rubbish. Actually, chances are it is complete and utter rubbish but I’m sharing this only for idle curiosity’s sake as I have an interest in the stuttering experience through the ages. I really like the illustrations throughout the magazine :)

I know you’re eager to hear about Pagoclone, the drug that supposedly can prevent stuttering. On this episode, I speak with John Hathaway who is a test subject of Pagoclone. Does the drug really prevent stuttering? Is it a cure? John also blogs about his experiences with testing the drug. Check it out at Pagoclone Study.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden talked about stuttering on The View. I haven’t seen the video but since it was posted on the NSA website, you know it will be good! :) Glad to see Joe Biden doesn’t hide the fact that he stutters and it was difficult to live with.

Part 1

Part 2

Part3

Part 4

Continuing from episode 80′s Big UK stammering meet up, I’m back on Skype chatting with Pam and her friend Sheila. These two online friends recently met in person for the first time. Shiela also wrote an interesting guest post on Pam’s blog describing a few aspects of what it feels like for a woman to stutter. We chat about PMS/PMT’s effects on female stutterers, the feeling of being a mother of a stuttering child and the differences in perspectives on stuttering between men and women. As I did for Pam and her friends in episode 80, I also ask Sheila what went through her mind when meeting Pam, Tone and Lisa for the first time.

Further reading: A Silent Minority by Julia Ammon and a few blog posts by Pam; “You Have An Unusual Stutter” and Breathe In, Breathe Out.

Music used on this episode: Aren’t Women Grand by Sophie Tucker

In this episode, Jaan Pill joins me in a Thai restaurant (anyone for pad thai?) to chat about his experiences with speech therapy, the ISTAR program, the Stuttering Association of Toronto, and creating his own method of controlling his rate of speech. Afterwards, we go slightly off topic and briefly talk about the time he met legendary animator Bob Clampett, co-creator of Bugs Bunny!

I’m the one who gets interviewed on this episode! Remember way back in episode… um… well, about this time last year when I had Greg Snyder on my show? He’s a University professor who once in a while asks stutterers to come in to his class for a Q&A session. It’s a great chance to give future speech therapists the inside story on what if feels like to stutter and all the goodness and crappity crap that comes with it. I connected with Greg’s class over Skype and here it is in all it’s mp3 glory.

Before all this, we hear from a new listener!

While reading Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game, you can absolutely feel the author’s positive energy coming from her experience stuttering her very important speech at her graduation ceremony. IN FRONT OF EVERYONE. It’s not so scary after all :)

“All of you deserve to feel a sense of accomplishment and encouragement and if you feel there is no one rooting for you-I AM! Don’t be afraid to be a fruit loop in a world of Cheerios. Stay strong and stutter beautifully.“

Today I talk about a few positive experiences when I stutter with confidence even though I may feel awkward about it inside. Particularly, how we can tell when the people we’re talking to accept our stuttering. We also hear from @stutterrockstar‘s thoughts on her stuttering increase right after I receive a timely phone call providing a glimpse in what I sound like on the phone- and speaking in Italian!

Speaking of Italian, I’ll be launching an Italian and French version of Stuttering is Cool in November. And speaking of November, don’t forget that Friday, November 13th is Stuttering Appreciation Day!

Stuttering, music, and MySpace. That’S what we’re talking about today with @dima7b, @stutteringme and his lovely wife, @courtneydare. Dmitriy (@dima7b) is a star. He doesn’t let his stuttering get in the way of him in school and businsess. He shares with us his techniques in stuttering with confidence in all of life’s situations; talking in class, giving a speech, running his own business— there’s nothing that can stop this guy! :)

Check out Dmitriy’s awesome work at myspace.com/dima7b. He can take something frightfully ugly like a MySpace page and turn it into a gorgeous work of art.

Ever wondered why we go through phases of differing stuttering volumes? Today, my conversation with @ridwa326 continues from last week’s episode with @stutterrockstar joining in (along with special guest Gene). We ponder our increase in our stuttering the past few weeks and that of our fellow stuttering friends. Is it the summer holidays? Mercury in retrograde? Ridwan also tells us about the speech therapy he had as a child, growing up with fellow stuttering family members.

We take a Skype trip around the UK and with our first stop in London for a fun chat with @barrymcgee talking about his experiences with a 4-day intensive McGuire Program. I never took it but from the sounds of it, it seems very effective and liberating. We’re joined later in the show by @ridwan326, hailing from Glasgow, where we chat about the best things to do in job interviews.

On today’s show— I mean, on tonight’s show, I play fantastic audio from two fantastic ladies. The first is from a new listener in Germany sharing her ti-ger story with us (and photos) and the second audio comes from Pam Mertz, the @stutterrockstar. Pam shares with us her voice on stuttering conventions. I also do a bit of sharing myself on tonight’s episode; the sudden increase in my stuttering and being confident as I stutter through a joke.

Tonight’s show has been recorded during the night while I peek through my spiffy Galileoscope and observe Jupiter and her beautiful Galilean moons.

Today I chat with Tim Coyne who is an actor living in Los Angeles and produces The Hollywood Podcast. Tim is a fantastic story teller so I invited him on my show to share his thoughts on how to tell a good story. I know all too well how stuttering can ruin a good story or joke you’re trying to tell.

• …I guess you could say I use my stuttering to my advantage; a social filter. I’ve got no time for snobbish standards.
• My advice: I don’t MAKE the time 4 standards. Don’t like my stuttering? Plenty of other people on the planet to make friends. Kthanxbai.
• Also, it’s the confidence that attracts people. That and shared interests, connections.
• Stutter & react like a wimp, then you’ll be seen as one. Stutter & react with confidence, people see you in a positive light.
• You’ll get there. For me, it was getting positive feedback and rising above the negative. It ain’t easy. You’ll get knocked down
• THAT’S IT! Having control. Not of your speech but of your rejection of societal norms.
  
• THAT’S the root of getting confidence. Being in control & rejecting societal expectations.
• Exactly. You know your self-worth. Exude it. Man, they should teach this in speech therapy.
  
• @stirpicus To quote Demetri Martin: “Stuttering’s not a disability, it just adds drama and suspense to any conversation!” ;)

I also talk about a new website I started up called Ti-Ger.org. I hope you can join in on the fun :)

I chat with horror author, Robert R Best, today about his writing, his podcast and of course, his recent journey into his stuttering acceptance. In contrast to everything I talked about on episode 56 about letting your stuttering out and just do it, we ponder a dilemma Robert is facing for an upcoming convention where stuttering just may not be appropriate. Yes, it’s easy to say there’s room for stuttering everywhere— and there is— but certain circumstances may be an iffy.

Listen to today’s episode and share your advice for Robert. Leave a voice mail at +1-206-339-0389 or record an mp3 and e-mail it to coolstutter(at)gmail(dot)com or record a message right from your computer mic in the orange box on this page.

We also hear from @stutterrockstar where she talks about blocking.

I was a guest on episode 145 of the Canadian Podcast Buffet last week and coincidentally, the topic of the talk of the week was ethics in eiditing. When you have to edit a long interview down to a shorter time, you have to be really careful in your editing that you’re not changing context. We chatted about editing out stuttering. Is it wrong to edit out stuttering?

Today we talk to fellow stutterer, Daniel Smrokowski, also known as @photodan on Twitter. Daniel is an athlete in the Special Olympics and a fantastic motivational speaker, photographer, writer, and so much more.

We talk about how Daniel go into podcasting, public speaking, and getting rid of the r-word.

Today’s episode is actually an episode of Stuttering.tv with co-host Greg Snyder of Stuttering.Me. Video didn’t seem like it was going to happen so we decided to record audio instead. Even that was a tech challenge at times :) When technology throws you lemons, make lemonade! Ok, back on topic. Sites mentioned on today’s show include:

• Daniel’s Photography Home
• Daniel’s motivating speech
• Daniel’s articles in The Torch
• r-word.org

I was interviewed on the fantastic Just One More Book! podcast produced by Mark Blevis and Andrea Ross. They had a call for art submissions for their Love of Reading Gallery and mine was entitled Now This One. I talk about how I came up with the idea, how I drew it and my thoughts on digital art and what stops me from using my iPhone as a sketchbook. You can listen to the interview here.

This is stuttering link #32 because I hardly stutter my shows. Reason being that stutterers usually stutter a lot less when speaking by themselves. So this is a great opportunity to hear how I usually stutter on my high-stuttering days. Yet I still get my message across. Stuttering doesn’t prevent you from communicating effectively ;)

Here’s what I came up with for my Anti-Quack character who, as you’ve most likely guessed, is the scientist who actually does research and keeps up to date on stuttering knowledge, etc. Inspired by (and slight caricature) you-know-who and his podcast ;)

I still need to refine him. Perhaps thicker pencil strokes will do the trick.

A previous version of anti-quack:

Here’s a sneak preview of an upcoming character I’ll be introducing (once I get off my arse, that is!) in a very near future comic. This stutterer will be totally cool with his stuttering and will play a role in bringing Franky Banky to accepting his stutter as well. At the moment, his name is Chess until I can find a better name (if any). The final Chess is at the bottom.

]]> http://stutteringiscool.com/stuttering/quack-and-anti-quack/feed/ 2 http://stutteringiscool.com/stuttering/testing/ http://stutteringiscool.com/stuttering/testing/#comments Fri, 23 Jan 2009 23:39:32 +0000 Danny http://www.stutteringiscool.com/?p=206 Just a test. Please ignore.

Greg Snyder, co-founder of StutterTalk has a twitter account where among other things, he shares fantastic links about stuttering. Yesterday, my eye caught on this gem, Your Choices Determine Your Happiness, by Keith Harrel.

Keith is a professional speaker and a person who stutters. Thanks to a fantastic teacher and terriffic mother, Keith learned at a very early age the importance of having a positive attitude about his stuttering.

"My mother taught me then and there that attitude is a choice. When I told her I couldn’t go back to school, she listened and understood what was contributing to that negative attitude. She was able to listen to the pain that fueled my fears and humiliation. She then gave me the opportunity to choose a new attitude.

You have choice. You can accept an attitude of humiliation and fear or you can take on an attitude of action. You can be a victim or a victor. You can let life run you over or you can take it on"

I highly recommend this read and I also recommend you sign up on Twitter if you haven’t already done so and follow Greg. And me!

It’s hard living with a stutter. Even harder that stuttering isn’t understood. Today’s episode focuses on 2 of the many downsides of stuttering. First, I give a little bit of a rant about the perception that people who don’t stutter seem to have about people who do stutter. Despite what we tell them. In the second half, I talk about something that’s been going on stutterwise with me lately. I’m just too tired to talk. What is causing this and most importantly of all, how can I prevent it?

The first show of 2009. Happy New Year everybody! And with a new year comes new year resolutions so on today’s show, I talk a bit about what I plan do to in 2009 to improve myself. I’d also like to hear your new year resolutions, too. Continuing with the new theme, I talk about the new redesign (finally it’s up!) of this very website, stutteringiscool.com. All recorded on my way home at 3 a.m. New Years’ Day. You’d think I’d be stuttering up a storm at that hour!

Here’s a video of a CBS news clip about stuttering from the CBS website. It talks about the struggles and pain of stuttering through clips of people sharing their experiences at the National Stuttering Association’s annual conference. I can relate to each and every single one of them and wish I was able to attend. there is something fantastic that always happens whenever I hear other stutterers talk about the same experiences I went through (hence, my podcast!). Note the various professions these stutterers have despite their speech.

Sorry, there’s a 15-30 second ad at the beginning and the sound is only one the left channel for some reason.

Watch CBS Videos Online