Storytelling skills are useful in many walks of life. Whether you would like more confidence in public speaking, are interested in the deeper issues brought out by stories, want to develop your creative expression, or want to tell stories but simply don’t know how to start, the most important thing to do is BEGIN!
I run one-day storytelling workshops for beginners and experienced tellers alike. They:
– explore different aspects of story and how we connect with them, through tellings and discussion
– develop your storytelling skills and confidence by providing a ‘toolkit’ of techniques
– play with story and imagination through story games
– increase your repertoire of stories
These workshops are designed for learning at your own pace, and sharing in a friendly and informal atmosphere. I’ve used my own experience in storytelling to develop activities which are useful, practical, thought-provoking and fun.
Feedback from previous workshops:
“Thank you for firing my enthusiasm and confidence.”
“Thank you for a fabulous day, inspiring and very productive. I’m going away with lots of ideas……”
“Very enjoyable day, look forward to the next.”
“Excellent balance of listening, learning and telling.”
“This has given me the confidence to tell a story at the next event I go to.”
For details of upcoming workshops, please see Calendar.
Previous workshops: (let me know if you’d be interested in coming along to future events):
Stories to Change the World
A one-day workshop for environmental education professionals. Learn how to work science and imagination together to create compelling, realistic environmental stories. Strengthen your storytelling skills and learn new games, tips and tricks for storytelling in the natural environment. This workshop will be held in the heart of Dartmoor, with outdoor and wet weather options for storytelling activities.
Storytelling Skills
A one-day workshop all about starting to tell stories. This day is for beginners to storytelling, or those with little experience.
We will work with one of the Grimm’s stories (a wonder tale) to look at story structure, character, and idiosyncrasy; walk the story, considering environment and audience; and work with techniques for remembering story and gaining confidence. By the end of the day, you will have had the opportunity to tell at least one story that you can take away and make your own.
The Heart of a Story
Looking in detail at the narrative and structure of story, this day is for beginners and experienced storytellers alike.
What are the fundamentals of a really good story? We will explore this using ancient Arthurian myth, considering character, description, action and emotion throughout a story, and the ‘hero’s journey’. Playing with individual stories, we will share tips and tricks for strengthening story structure, and explore pace and balance in telling. This workshop will help you develop confidence in speaking and telling, through understanding of the material and the story sequence.
Through Different Eyes
This workshop explores story from the perspective of different characters, and from members of the audience. It’s a day for beginners and experienced storytellers alike.
We will use a Norse myth to explore how different characters might live, feel, and act, and discuss how this can enrich our telling. We will then walk individual stories from the perspective of the villain, the hero, the maiden and any number of other human and non-human characters, and share our findings!
Used with care and measure, these techniques can bring empathy and integrity to a telling. I hope you’ll find different perspectives to use in your own stories.
Spirits of Place and Time
This workshop considers the context of stories: the all-important small details that set the scene. It’s a day for beginners and experienced storytellers alike.
All too often, stories are told from an indeterminate time and place, ‘once upon a time somewhere in the world’. How about placing your story in historical time, and actual place? What would they be?
We will play with story in different times and landscapes, talk about honouring the source of a story, and discuss the ethics of telling stories from other places and traditions. We will also (weather permitting) go out into the countryside to explore how to become closer to the landscape of the story you’re telling, and look at the use of detail in storytelling.