A bit more background
Shane has more than 34 years experience of working with and using oral stories, in a Professional capacity in a wide and varied context, more on this later, firstly I will start at the very beginning.
The Beginning;
The oldest of six children, Shane grew up in a family home where the family would regularly sit down and hear traditional oral stories told by his father.
Shane would often repeat these stories or sing nursery rhymes to his younger siblings. He continued this oral tradition with his own three children.
A native of Suffolk and East Anglia, Shane grew up steeped in folk & fairy tales, local stories, folklore and the traditions of his native birthplace.
Shane has a great interest and affinity with the landscape and the stories held within a landscape. He also has a keen interest in stories from other cultures and undertakes a lot of deep study, sometimes including field study, to inform the stories that he tells.
Hello from me
Shane has been using and telling stories in a Professional capacity for over 34 years. Shane spent more than twenty years using ‘Applied Storytelling’, as a therapeutic tool, with children and adults, firstly as a Qualified Social Worker and then as a Qualified Therapuetic Counsellor, using real life story content, ‘re-narrated’ in a semi-structured story frame. Before eventually undertaking significant training as a Performance Storyteller. Shane has trained at the ‘School of Storytelling’ and also with, Hugh Lupton, Ben Haggerty, Paul Jackson, Eric Maddern, Sally Pomme Clayton, Dougie Mackay, Malcolm Green.
Experience
A Cultural Experience
Shane draws on the experience he had in Canada in the 1990’s, where he was invited to attend a traditional community gathering of the Indigenous Metis people. Shane was part of a large community Healing Story Circle, for ancestral healing. A humbling experience and an honour not many non-indidgenous people receive.
Today
Nowadays Shane divides his time in three ways, as a professional storyteller; running a small private counselling practice; and as a bushcraft teacher, mainly with children. He is also an occasional poet and story writer.
Shane works hard at connecting and supporting those interested in storytelling. He also occassionally runs Storytelling Workshops.
Shane is a Trustee of the Society for Storytelling.
