WOVEN: Telling the Heroine’s Journey
The idea for WOVEN grew from Kate Farrell writing her memoir, blending motifs and archetypes of the heroine’s journey tales with true events of her first forty-two years. As many perhaps did during the two-plus years of the pandemic, Kate reflected on her unique, formative years, and dared to write a memoir in her own storytelling style with assistance from a deeply perceptive editor and feedback from generous beta readers and endorsers to complete the manuscript—currently being published as a series on Substack.
But the archetypal layer of the universal myths, folk and fairy tales of the feminine quest continued to speak to her in their magical, symbolic language. As Kate began to share her memoir in snippets, she was stunned to learn that few women knew of the narrative arc of the heroine’s journey.
Workshops: In Person and Online
In early 2023, with the incredible support of the Bay Area literary community and Mechanics Institute of San Francisco, Kate scheduled a two-hour Saturday session to explore the heroine’s journey for writers. The response was electric; the MI session was overbooked with a waiting list; its motivated students engaged at an intense level in free writes and discussions as Kate told a foundational fairy tale in segments. This extraordinary interest was repeated in a two-session workshop at Mechanics Institute this fall.
Adapting the workshops to an online platform was the next step: Kate was honored to be selected to facilitate online courses with Story Circle Network, Texas, and Transformative Language Arts Network, Pennsylvania. Not only were online students able to plumb the depths of the ancient feminine tales, but offered their expertise in the furthering the study as facilitators. Thus, WOVEN was born.
Mission Statement
To provide opportunities to explore the fundamental aspects of the universal heroine’s journey through activities such as, but not limited to, talks, workshops, trainings, retreats, in person and online, publications, and other media. We are also looking to recruit facilitators and presenters for upcoming classes and to expand our teaching potential.
Upcoming Classes
Visit woventales.net and be transported to another world that blends ancient and modern in a richly textured and brightly colored journey of its own.
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