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Milestones -- a few memorable moments thus far in my storytelling career

My first storytelling
business card!
In 1991, I left my job to pursue
storytelling on a full time basis.
I've been telling ever since!

Although already sharing stories as part of my library job, I became absolutely smitten with the art after my first visit (in 1988) to the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee.

I began storytelling while working (1979-1991) in the library at The Governor More-head School for the Blind. I became librarian in 1986 and my weekly story-times became weekly story-tellings.

If someone were to ask me what I consider to be my biggest contri-bution to storytelling, without hesitation, I would say that it was the creation of The Journal of Tar Heel Tellers.

From 1994 until 2000, my friend Mark Russell and I pursued my vision of producing a newsletter that would connect storytellers and promote storytelling throughout North Carolina.

To the right is the premier issue,
June 1994.

Tellabration is a celebration of storytelling that occurs nation-wide every November. In 1996, our local guild, the Harvest Moon Storytelling Guild (now defunct) hosted a very successful Tellabration in Durham.
I served as organizer and emcee for the evening concert. The very cool cover to the program, drawn by T. Massey, is shown above.

In 1999, I was honored to be invited to perform as a featured teller at Asheville's Tellabration!

Here I am with a cauldron of candy at the North Carolina Storytelling Festival in Burlington. It was one of the tough jobs I had to perform as President of the North Carolina Storytelling Guild! I served as the Guild's president from July 2002 to June 2003.

The birth of the North Carolina Storytelling Guild!

Shown here in 1998, sitting between friends Dianne Hackworth, Mark Russell and Cynthia Brown, I was part of the organizing of a weekend storytelling retreat called Relighting the Spark, held at Browns Summit near Greensboro. Through the encourage-ment and direction of Dianne, Cynthia and me,
participants at that retreat took the steps to
organize and create a statewide guild.

The Journal of Tar Heel Tellers immediately became the Guild's official newsletter.

Sylvia Payne, the current Editor Magnificent of the Journal of Tar Heel Tellers, and I are all smiles here in 2004, as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the newsletter's founding.

My Repertoire of Stories

I continue to remain active with the North Carolina Storytelling Guild. My friend Dianne Hack-worth (shown here with me in 2006) and I are the coordinators of the Guild's annual Winter Workshop.

Held at a beautiful oceanside retreat center near Southport, this weekend event gives storytellers the opportunity to learn from internationally known tellers.

Storytelling Milestones

What Folks are Saying

In Memoriam

Bard's Blog

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