06/01/11……Follow live, world-wide storytelling adventure with Victoria

A Chinnor-based storyteller has given up her job to travel the world in search of stories which she will broadcast live on the web.

Victoria Parsons, who at 29 years-old is already an accomplished UK storyteller, has left her job writing subtitles for the BBC and flies off tomorrow, Friday, January 06, to dedicate herself full time to finding inspiration from the different cultures she experiences.

First stop for Victoria will be India, where she will take part in the biggest literary festival in Asia, in Jaipur which takes place from January 21 to 25.

The world tour, which includes Thailand, Burma and Sri Lanka, has been planned for Victoria to gather, collect and write traditional oral stories which will be available fortnightly via her YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/TaleTimeStories and her website http://taletimestories.com

?Story has the power to bring people together and I’m using the internet as a 21st century tool to achieve this,” explained Victoria. “Telling a story connects you there and then in a space and connection is something we are sadly missing in today?s society. My goal is to share stories as a means to a greater understanding between people.?

Aimed at eight to twelve year olds, Victoria?s stories will bring Gods and Goddesses, astrological myths and traditional folktales to life.

Victoria will be visiting schools, talking to locals and meeting other travelers to find her stories.

Tracey Smith, author/broadcaster on sustainable living said: “Victoria?s work will inspire parents the world over to slow down their pace, conjure up a few characters and set aside the time to create special memories with their children, before the opportunity to embrace it has sadly passed.”

When she returns to the UK in a year?s time, Victoria will be publishing her first book, Circle of Stars, which she will be writing on her travels.

Mark Boyle, author of The Moneyless Man and founder of Freeconomy said: ?Stories play a huge role in the types of society we create. Every moment, of every day, we are enacting a story that has evolved over millennia; and almost always, unknowingly. Until we change these underlying, silent stories, very little will change in society. What Victoria is really doing is teaching children – and more importantly, their parents – that there are many ways we could live, some potentially much better, and that this way is but one.?

Victoria will be updating her website two or three times a week from where ever she is in the world. A story map on her site shows where she is currently traveling. Her itinerary includes India, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma, Nepal and Sri Lanka and will take a year to complete.

THAME, Oxfordshire 06/01/10