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Bio
Dawn Nelson an author, consultant, re-enactor, folklorist, performance storyteller and all-round word-witch specialising in landscape, nature and heritage interpretation. She lives within the beautiful, South Downs National Park in the south east of the UK. Her specialism is landscape, heritage and nature interpretation and she regularly works with heritage sites, museums, schools and outdoor educators to bring landscape, heritage and nature to life for all through stories and folklore. Her passion is connecting people with nature, history and the landscape that surrounds them, through storytelling. Her belief is that in order to connect with our inner selves and the rhythms of nature that lie deep within us, we must first reconnect with the natural world that surrounds us and the stories it holds in order to rewild ourselves through story.
She can be found regularly working and telling stories for the South Downs National Park Authority, Weald & Downland Living Museum, heritage sites and schools across Hampshire and Sussex. You can also find her performing stories at events such as boat burnings, Beltane celebrations and multi-period re-enactment shows.
Her successful podcast 'Stories From Lore' looks at the lore and nature of the British landscape and her books include 'Adventures In Nature' (The History Press, 2021), Stories of The Sun (The History Press, 2024), The Little History Of Storytelling (The History Press, coming 2026) and Tree Lore: The myth, magic and wisdom of trees from root to bough (Quarto TBC)
Quotes:
'By reconnecting with the stories of those who walked this land before us, we can hope to relearn those lessons and reconnect with the nature around us as the biophilic beings we are. Connecting as a part of nature not apart from it, rewilding ourselves through story.' - Dawn Nelson on rewilding through story.
'I regularly walk the South Downs and as I walk, the knowledge and rhythms of stories create a bridge between me and the landscape. The land speaks to me of ancient tales, stories of green women in the trees, tales of the epic journeys of the swallows and martins, and the lore of the boggarts who lurk beneath the hedgerows.'
Dawn Nelson on stories in the landscape.
'Blending nature narrative with folklore and story, I sought to bring the South Downs to life through the pages of the book and shine a light on the crepuscular hours of the day.' - Dawn Nelson, talking about Stories Of The Sun
Reviews:
'Storyteller Dawn Nelson has worked an indescribable magic from Year R all the way up to Y12. From Norse and Greek myths, to local tales and folklore from the land, I have had the genuine joy of watching the children listen, sing and join in with call and response (as if they all knew beforehand that they had a part to play!).
Young people's ability to focus for long periods is often underestimated because of increasing reliance on technology. What today proved to me is that if you put a brilliant storyteller in front of them with a hoard of fantastic stories, they will listen, they will stop fidgeting, they do fall into the depths of the narrative to emerge triumphant at the other side.'
Bryony Hart, Teacher Of English & Whole School Literacy, Portsmouth Grammar School
'I and my step granddaughter 4 yrs were entranced by a story teller who told us about the queen rat, her treasure and a hapless labourer who cleaned out the cess pits during the night. Most entertaining and not a sound was heard from the spellbound audience both adult and children of all ages. That tells you something.'
Steve H, Visitor, Review via Trip Advisor.
'Your storytelling skills are on another level! Amazing. Seeing how enthralled the children were with your words was pure magic'.
Lisa Hall, audience member, Butser Ancient Farm via Facebook.