About No, YOU Tell It!

Write your story. Perform someone else’s.

No, YOU Tell It! is a nonfiction series that advocates for authentic personal stories by having storytellers speak each other’s words aloud, empowering voices on the page and stage. Our collaborative workshop process equips writers of all levels with literary tools to elevate the impact of their words.

For each show, the NYTI team leads four storytellers through two writing workshop sessions to tell their true-life tales on the page. Then about a week before the show, we pair up our storytellers and ask them to trade scripts. When one of our storytellers speaks their partner’s piece aloud, it does two important things: One, it gives that storyteller a chance to step into their story partner’s culture, identity, and perspective. Two, the writer hears their own story in a different voice.

In 2022, we celebrated 10 years of switched-up storytelling with the launch of the No, YOU Tell It! Ten-Year Anthology from Palm Circle Press. This collection of story swaps is not a “best of” but a showcase of how the collaborative nature of No, YOU Tell It! makes writing and performing personal narratives accessible, empathetic, and transformative. The result is a vibrant anthology that illustrates the history and development of the series over the past decade.

Nothing informs your story like hearing someone else perform your story!

Follow @noyoutellit on Insta for more.

The No, YOU Tell It! Team

Kelly Jean Fitzsimmons
Creator and Producer
Kelly Jean Fitzsimmons is a writer, educator, and storyteller based in Astoria, Queens. Her work has appeared in HILOBROW, Marie Claire, Hippocampus Magazine, and she is the editor of the No, YOU Tell It! Ten-Year Anthology 2022, available from Palm Circle Press. Kelly Jean works as a college essay writing instructor through The Center for Fiction and at several NYC high schools helping students find and craft personal essays that open a window into their unique character for admissions officers. She created and produces No, YOU Tell It!, a nonfiction series that brings together storytellers to trade tales, speak each other’s words, and empower voices on the page and stage. Learn more about Kelly Jean and her work on her website.
Tim Lindner
Producer, Social Media and Story Coach
Tim Lindner is a course developer, poet, and college Writing Instructor at Middlesex College. He’s published poems in 300 Days of Sun, The Citron Review, The Northern Virginia Review, and more. He also owns a small business, Revisionary Writing and Editing LLC, where he helps people write their resumes, college essays, books and more. He’s been helping No, YOU Tell It! since 2020 as a co-producer, social media content creator, and storytelling coach for the program’s virtual and in-person shows. He recently edited a collection of stories and poems about death and grieving to be published by Tolsun Books in 2023.
Erika Iverson
Founding Member, Director and Dramaturg
Erika Iverson is a New York based theatre artist, writer and storyteller. She is proud to be part of the creative team at No, YOU Tell It! where she serves as director, dramaturg, and cheerleader for non-linear storytelling. Thanks to her association with La MaMa ETC, Erika was able to act in Germany, to create an original dance theatre piece in Italy, and to perform Ionesco’s The Lesson in the country of the playwright’s birth, Romania. Erika has also performed at The Cornelia Street Café, the Abington Theatre Company, The Knitting Factory, and Judson Street Church. She has created original roles as a featured actor with the Magis Theatre Company and This Is Not A Theatre Company. In addition to her work with No, YOU Tell It! she has directed shows for One Woman Standing and the United Solo Festival.