I grew up in a household where the spoken word was a form of currency. My father had been a Baptist minister and critiquing the Sunday sermon was just one of the ways where the integrity of words was weighed and measured. Not surprisingly I have a built-in bull-shit detector that pings at spin - religious or secular.

My mother loved AA Milne and read and recited his words to me through childhood. I think learning words by heart is a forgotten and hugely underestimated joy. Garrison Keilor describes learning poetry as “a cello in your head, a portable beauty to steady you and ward off despair.” (Good Poems, 2002).

I began my working life as a teacher of English and Drama then I saw a storyteller - the rest is history. Kym Lardner introduced me to storytelling, Laura Sims also inspires me. I started telling stories when my own children were small and early on a lot of my work was to audiences of children in school and community based settings. More recently I have been enjoying telling to adults and young people who are often surprised at what a spell-binding experience listening can be.

Between 1994-1999 I collaborated with musicians Tim Humphrey and Madeleine Flynn performing at festivals and creating a CD - to the heartland and other tales. From the year 2000 I spent six years listening to people’s stories in a pastoral care role in a state secondary school. I started writing in response to them and am currently doing a Professional Writing and Editing course at RMIT.

Now I’m telling stories again as well as teaching people how to tell and how to be a community of listeners. I tell stories and poetry from traditional and contemporary sources, as well as moments from my own experience.

In 2008 there will be a series of soirees including an event for the Winter Solstice and exciting collaborations with musicians and artists.