Kate Forsyth

Novelist – Speaker – Master Storyteller

Award-winning & bestselling author Kate Forsyth has captivated audiences all around the world with her passion, charm and verve.

One moment she’ll make you laugh; the next she’ll bring you to the brink of tears. Most of all, she will inspire you to find your own story and to be brave enough to tell it.

Kate Forsyth is the internationally bestselling and award-winning author of almost forty books, ranging from picture books to poetry to novels for both children and adults. She was recently voted one of Australia’s Favourite 15 Novelists, and has been called “quite possibly … one of the best story tellers of our modern age.’

Kate is an accredited master storyteller and has a doctorate in fairy tales from the University of Technology, having already completed a BA in Literature and a MA in Creative Writing. She is known as Australia’s ‘Queen of Fairy Tales’ (to know more about Kate, read her Official Biography).

Kate is also a direct descendant of Charlotte Waring, the author of the first book for children ever published in Australia, ‘A Mother’s Offering to her Children’.

An eagerly sought after lecturer and speaker, Kate has:

    • taught barefoot Fijian children in schools with dirt floors
    • told ghost stories in the shadow of Melrose Abbey in the Scottish Borders
    • created zombie romances with wildly excited children – including a young prince – at an elite Singaporean school
  • celebrated the gift of an original gypsy caravan to the Powerhouse Museum with tales drawn from Gypsy folklore
  • motivated jaded professionals in a spiritual retreat on a Greek island
  • swapped anecdotes on stage with authors like Joanne Harris, Diana Gabaldon, Raymond Feist, and Terry Pratchett at countless literary festivals from Chicago to Glasgow
  • given the keynote speech at an academic conference on Folklore & Fantasy at the University of Chichester in Sussex
  • been invited to lecture on fairy tales and her books at Oxford University
  • inspired under-privileged children at Kirribilli House, at the special request of the Governor-General, the Honourable Quentin Bryce
  • amused and diverted audiences at literary lunches and dinners held at haunted homesteads, country pubs, rustic vineyards and elegant restaurants
  • helped countless people to connect and communicate by harnessing the seductive power of storytelling

 

No matter the event, no matter the organisation, Kate Forsyth can entertain and embolden, stimulate and surprise, her audience.

To book Kate to speak at your function, simply email her on [email protected], or contact her via the Contact page

TALKS

THE STORY OF MY LIFE 

Kate has wanted to be a writer for as long as she can remember. She talks about her creative journey, her struggles with the lifelong effects of a tragic childhood accident, her love of fairy tales and storytelling, and the fascinating histories behind her best-selling and award-winning books.
Her story is an inspiration to anyone who has always had a dream, but has never found the way to pursue it.
Kate has told the story of her life to people of all ages, all over the world. She can tell it short or tell it long, tell it sweet or tell it sad … it is never quite the same. She can focus on her books for adults or her books for children, depending on the age of the audience, or she can talk more about the writing process if the talk is for aspiring authors.  
Just let Kate know what you’d like, and she will willingly adapt the talk to your wishes.  If desired, this talk can be accompanied by a slide show.
THE SMALL BROWN PEBBLE
Kate is the descendant of Charlotte Waring Atkinson, the author of the first children’s book published in Australia. Her great-great-great-great-grandmother’s life story is an extraordinary tale of love, grief, loss, and triumph against overwhelming odds. Audience member are sometimes moved to tears by Kate’s telling of the tale.
The story takes about 15 minutes to tell, and so Kate often combines it with the story of her life – just let her know if you’d to hear it.
THE SECRET HISTORY OF FAIRY TALES 
Kate’s lifelong interest in myths and fairy tales led her to undertake a doctorate in fairy tales studies – and she has since lectured on the subject all over the world. Many of her books explore well-known stories in new and unexpected ways, and her novel Bitter Greens was called ‘the best fairy tale retelling since Angela Carter’. In this engaging and eye-opening talk, Kate talks about her own fascination with fairy tales, their long, dark history, their hidden meanings, and their use in narrative therapy and other methods of psychological healing. She can tell you about the history and symbolism of your own favourite fairy tale, or help you find new ways to draw upon these ancient tales in your own writing. This talk can be accompanied by a slide show, if desired.
THE IMPOSSIBLE QUEST
Kate tells the story behind the inspiration and creation of her bestselling fantasy adventure series for children, The Impossible Quest. This talk draws upon her own childhood and is accompanied by a slide show. It takes an hour to tell, including questions, and is best for upper primary or lower secondary students.

THE SOLACE OF STORIES 

Kate talks about the astonishing power of stories to connect with other people. A subtle and powerful tool, useful in teaching, marketing, advertising, or any industry which involves communication between people, storytelling bridges the gap between humans and helps them to empathise and learn and experience in ways that facts and figures can never hope to match. Stories take place in the imagination and so allow us to tap into the creative well which is the source spring of innovation, exploration and change. Stories move us to tears, make us laugh, and inspire us to think and wonder and create (and Kate’s stories will do all this and more).

STORYTELLING SESSIONS

Kate is an accredited performance storyteller and has told tales all over the world, to both adults and children. She knows dozens of tales, and has a small box full of fascinating charms and found objects that a member of the audience can pick at random to help choose the story Kate will tell. Here are just a few of Kate’s most popular stories to tell:

‘Sweet Porridge’ – a short tale from the brothers Grimm that Kate normally tells to children aged 5+
‘The First Christmas Tree’ – an eerie tale from Germany, best for students aged 9 -16
‘The Seaforth Doom’ – a story about a famous Scottish curse, best for students aged 9 – 16
‘The Queen Who Lost Her Head’ – the life story of Mary, Queen of Scots, best for students aged 9 – 16
‘The Escape of the Young King’ – the story of King Charles II and the oak tree, best for students aged 9 -16
‘The Singing, Springing Lark’ – a beautiful and unusual version of ‘Beauty & the Beast’, usually told to young adults and adults
‘Tam Lin’, a dark romantic tale from Scotland, usually told to young adults and adults
‘The Small Brown Pebble’, the moving story of Kate’s famous ancestor who wrote the first children’s book published in Australia,  usually told to young adults and adults

Workshops

A TOUCH OF MAGIC WORKSHOP

 

MASTERCLASS WORKSHOP: BLASTING THROUGH WRITER’S BLOCK

BUILDING CASTLES IN THE AIR WORKSHOP

MASTERCLASS WORKSHOP: PLOTTING & PLANNING

MASTERCLASS WORKSHOP: HISTORY, MYSTERY & MAGIC

WRITING FOR CHILDREN WORKSHOP

WRITING THE FANTASTICAL WORKSHOP

THE STORY DOCTOR – AN EDITING MASTERCLASS

RE-SPINNING THE MAGIC OF FAIRY TALES

BRINGING CHARACTERS TO LIFE

 

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TALKS AND WORKSHOP – FEES