As we approach Thanksgiving and the holiday season in December, it’s not too early to make plans to attend the annual Florida Storytelling Festival on the last weekend in January at the historic Lakeside Inn in Mount Dora. Tickets to the Festival make great holiday gifts. There will be four days of storytelling performances, including […]

Phyllis NeSmith, a former president and long-time member of the Florida Storytelling Association, passed away in August. She was 94. She was a well-known Florida storyteller who teamed with her friend and fellow storyteller Myra Davis of Bartow to perform as the “Peace River Tale Tellers”. Both Phyllis and Myra were retired schoolteachers who had

Ray Gant, a longtime member of the Sandcastle Storytellers and a past president of the group, passed away on July 20 at his home in Port Orange. He was 85. He was active and served as an officer in several Toastmaster groups in Brevard County, Jacksonville, and Volusia County. He won several awards for his

By Walt Belcher What is the best book for storytelling?    A book of stories?   Or a how-to book on the craft of storytelling? If you are a storyteller, then it’s very likely that both kinds of books are on your shelves.  My personal collection includes the classics such as “Aesop’s Fable” and “Grimm’s Fairy Tales”

The following is from Dr. Joel Ying’s blog on his website: Reprinted here with his permission. Joel is offering a storytelling conference at Florida Gulf Coast University. He is a past president of the Florida Storytelling Association and continues as the director of the FSA annual storytelling festival in Mount Dora. Theme: “Storytelling as Healing: Creating

Caren S. Neile, who has taught storytelling classes for over two decades at Florida Atlantic University, presented two successful programs in April that were made possible by grants from the Florida Storytelling Association. On April 2, Neile held a workshop for students: “The Storytelling Superpower: Why and How Telling Tales Can Jumpstart Your Career–And Your

BY Walt Belcher Do you love storytelling?  Now, more than ever, is the time to step-up and give some love to the Florida Storytelling Association. Coming off a very successful Florida Storytelling Festival in January, I would like to make a pitch for monthly giving. One-time donations are greatly appreciated, but nothing beats the on-going

By Pat Nease The first time I entered a Liar’s Contest was at an Ocala Storytelling Festival (thanks, Jessica McCune!) where the featured teller was none other than Bil Lepp. What a way to start!  Having never created a whopper before – at least not for competition – I listened to as many samples as

By Walt Belcher Brought together by COVID and Zoom, the monthly meetings of the Doc Moore Storytelling Guild is a fun event that I discovered last year, and one that I love to attend. Professional storyteller and author Tim Tingle is the welcoming host to this story swap, named in honor of the late beloved

One of the many features at the 40th annual Florida Storytelling Festival is a chance to sample a variety of tellers, stories, and styles from our porch tellers. Free and open to the public on the famed rocking-chair-lined porch of the Lakeside Inn in Mount Dora, the storytelling runs from 10 am to 1 pm