Elizabeth Ellis (born 1943) is an American storyteller and author known for her live performances of traditional tales, literature, Texas and Appalachian history and folklore, and personal memoir.Burch, Milbre. "Trail of Blood: Celebration and Capitulation in Eve Ensler's 'The Good Body' and Elizabeth Ellis's 'One Size Fits Some'." Storytelling, Self, Society 6, no. 2 (2010): 145-63. She was awarded the Circle of Excellence in 1997 by the National Storytelling Network after being recognized by her peers as a master storyteller. She is a regular performer at the National Storytelling Festival. She was selected as a "Listener's Choice" at the 30th Anniversary National Storytelling Festival and a Storyteller-In-Residence at the International Storytelling Center. She was the first John Henry Faulk Award recipient from the Tejas Storytelling Association.
Background and early career Born in Winchester, Kentucky, in 1943, Ellis grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Tennessee. Ellis credits her interest in stories to a storytelling family; she grew up hearing stories from her mother's parents and siblings.1 Kelley, Saundra. (2010). Southern Appalachian Storytellers: Interviews with Sixteen Keepers of the Oral Tradition (Contributions to Southern Appalachian Studies) McFarland. Pages 93-102.
Ellis went to library school and in the fall of 1969 became a children's librarian at the Dallas Public Library.Gramon, Jim. (2002) Legendary Texas Storytellers. Taylor Trade Publishing. p. 171. . When Ellis attended gigs of her musician friends, they would invite her on stage to tell stories between sets.
Festivals American Storytelling Festivals performed at include the National Storytelling Festival, the Bay Area Storytelling Festival, the Corn Island Storytelling Festival, the Flying Leap Festival, Haunting In The Hills, the L.A.U.G.H.S. Festival, the Mariposa Storytelling Festival, the Mesa Storytelling Festival, the Taos Storytelling Festival, the Southern Ohio Storytelling Festival, the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival and the Texas Storytelling Festival.
Bibliography Inviting the Wolf In: Thinking About Difficult Stories, written with Loren Niemi, August House, 2006 From Plot to Narrative, Parkhurst Brothers Publishing, 2012 Every Day a Holiday: A Storyteller's Memoir, Parkhurst Brothers Publishing, 2014
Discography , Speak Stories Series, Retrieved January 6, 2022 Like Meat Loves Salt and other tales, 1984 I Will Not Talk in Class: Stories for Children, 1989 Mothers and Daughters: Recorded Live At The National Storytelling Festival, 2001 Meddling In Wal-Mart ®: Recorded Live At The Mariposa Storytelling Festival, 2002 One Size Fits Some: Recorded Live At The National Storytelling Festival, 2008 Wading In The Jordan: Recorded Live At The National Storytelling Festival, 2008
Awards Anne Izard Storyteller's Choice AwardAnne Izard Storytellers' Choice Award, Westchester Library System, Retrieved July 11, 2017 2013, From Plot to Narrative 2014, Every Day a Holiday: A Storyteller's Memoir Oracle Award, National Storytelling Network 1997 - Circle of ExcellenceNational Storytelling Network, Retrieved July 11, 2017 2004 - South Central Region Service and Leadership 2013 - Lifetime Achievement AwardNational Storytelling Network, Retrieved July 11, 2017 Storytelling World Special Storytelling Resources 2002: Inviting the Wolf InFlora Joy, "The 2002 Storytelling World Award Winners and Honor Titles", Retrieved July 11, 2017 2013: From Plot to NarrativeFlora Joy, "The 2013 Storytelling World Resource Awards", Retrieved July 11, 2017. Tejas Storytelling Association 1986: John Henry Faulk AwardTejas Storytelling Association, "John Henry Faulk Award" , Retrieved July 11, 2017
See also Storytelling Storytelling festival
References
External links
A one-hour interview on the Art of Storytelling with Brother Wolf Elizabeth Ellis' speaks about Storytelling and the development of ethical behavior in young people.