Speaker Slam® is the storytelling competition for adults with a true story to tell. Ten storytellers. Five minutes each. One theme. The most powerful personal stories of the year compete on stage in Toronto for a prize package valued up to $50,000.
The stories that win at Speaker Slam® aren't lectures, motivational speeches, or curated brand pitches. They're personal narratives that lead the audience somewhere they didn't expect to go.
The best storytellers on our stage take a single moment from their own life and use it to reveal something true about all of us. The story is specific, vivid, and personal. The lesson is honest, earned, and resonates beyond the storyteller.
Don't preach. Don't teach. Don't try to motivate. Turn inward, reflect on the theme, and let the audience be moved by your honesty.
Every competition follows the same simple structure. The constraints are intentional. The story does the work.
Ten storytellers selected per qualifier. Each takes the stage to tell one story they have lived.
Five minutes to land your story. Tight enough to demand clarity. Long enough to take the audience somewhere.
Every event is built around a single theme. Your story has to genuinely connect to it, not just orbit around it.
Four industry judges score every story across six categories. Storytelling and message are weighted highest.
You don't need to be a writer or a professional speaker. You need to have lived something, sat with it long enough to understand it, and be ready to share it honestly.
You've built something out of a personal experience and want to share the truth of how it actually started, not the version you put in your bio.
Your work is rooted in something you've lived through. You want a stage where the story behind the lesson matters as much as the lesson itself.
You're working on something bigger than yourself, and you know the personal story is what cuts through. You want the platform to share it well.
Toronto has a rich storytelling community. Festivals, open mics, oral tradition gatherings. Speaker Slam® serves a different purpose for storytellers who want their work to lead somewhere.
| Speaker Slam® | The Moth GrandSLAM | Storytelling Festivals | Open Mic Story Nights | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Story Type | Personal narrative + universal message | Personal narrative | Folk, oral tradition, fiction | Anything personal, often improvised |
| Length | 5 minutes | 5 minutes | Varies, often 10 to 20 min | Varies, usually 5 to 8 min |
| Selection | Application + curated lineup | Slam-winners advance | Curated festival programming | Sign up at the door |
| Judging | Four industry judges, 100-pt rubric | Volunteer audience judges | Not competitive | Audience or hat picks |
| Top Prize | Up to $50,000 package | Title only | Festival recognition | Token or community recognition |
| What Comes Next | Paid speaking, media, TEDx | Recognition, podcast inclusion | Cultural participation | Community, practice |
Our format borrows the discipline of a slam and the stakes of a televised competition. None of these are wrong. Speaker Slam® is just built for a different goal.
Five themed qualifiers run from January through September. The top two storytellers from each earn a spot at the year-end finale at CBC Glenn Gould Studio.
Apply for one or more themes. Tell us briefly which moment from your life you'd build a story around. Selected storytellers are notified weeks before the event.
Walk on stage at Lula Lounge in Toronto with nine other storytellers. Five minutes. One theme. A live audience of 200. Two of you advance to the Grand Slam Finals.
Write a brand-new story around a surprise theme revealed at the Grand Slam. The top three storytellers earn the title of Inspirational Speaker of the Year.
Four industry judges score every story out of 100 points across six categories. The two highest-weighted categories tell you what we value most.
Storytelling at Speaker Slam® is backed by some of the largest prize packages in personal narrative competitions. Storytellers walk off our stage with assets that change what comes next.
Each themed qualifier awards a prize package donated by the night's industry judges. Top two storytellers also earn a spot at the Grand Slam Finals.
The top three Grand Slam storytellers earn the title of Inspirational Speaker of the Year. The top prize package is the largest in the inspirational storytelling space.
Five qualifiers per season at Lula Lounge. The Grand Slam Finals close out the year at CBC Glenn Gould Studio.
Lula Lounge — 1585 Dundas St W, Toronto
An intimate 200-seat venue in Toronto's west end. Doors at 6:00 PM, show at 7:00 PM. Five themed qualifier nights run from January through September.
CBC Glenn Gould Studio — 250 Front St W, Toronto
The biggest night of the Speaker Slam® calendar. A premium downtown theater, 14 of the year's strongest storytellers, and the highest stakes in the field.
Submissions for our remaining Season 10 themes are open. Send us yours and our team will be in touch about the next steps.