After deciding to be a writer when she was nine years old, Karen Hayes finally got her first novel published when her four children were nearly all adults. Since then she has had eight more published, plus a collection of poetry, short stories and books for children. In her workshops she will share her tips on how she bridged that gap between wanting to write, and being a full time writer. She has tutored creative writing in many places, including Exeter University, and feels that writing should be fun as well as rewarding.

Trevor Taylor has been practicing yang style tai chi for 22 years and teaching for 14 having initially learnt Chen Man Ching while living in the Isle of Skye, Scotland. He currently runs Tai Chi Spain with Steve Pointer so we are really pleased to welcome him to Devon and enable others to experience his gentle teaching and bubbling laughter. “Tai chi instruction is about being led to a place of understanding by someone who already knows. If we learn to drive we go to someone who can already drive. With tai chi it is the same. As we practice we accumulate knowledge which we are able to share. This is called sharing the practice and is the basis of tai chi instruction”

Claire Anstee makes everyone welcome in the session and even if you've never sung, she will soon dissipate any fears. She provides a warm, relaxing and fun session - which seems to include everyone, those more experienced singers and absolute beginners. The music she chooses is great and she always offers a choice. She has a wonderful voice herself, and is very able at teaching different harmony parts - so exciting when the song all comes together!”

Angus Clark, founder of Living Movement, is an internationally recognised tai chi instructor (TCUGB) author and movement consultant. He was the last westerner to study with the late grandmaster Dr Chi Chiang Tao. He has created simple, powerful formulae for applying the principles of the ancient classical movement system of tai chi to the modern world. He works in a wide variety of private, community, health, sporting and business situations, helping people to light the fire of their own potentials in their bodies, minds and hearts. When you embark upon any course with Angus you can expect to gather a rich vocabulary of moves and techniques that you will be able to use right away as tools to enhance your life.

Pippa Cherrington is a qualified and experienced tai chi instructor both with the Tai Chi Union of Great Britain and Living Movement. She has been exploring her subject for 11 years and has spent the last five sharing her understanding with others and helping them realise their own journeys with tai chi. “I firmly believe that practising tai chi makes a huge difference to our health and our outlook on life and its daily challenges and I’d like anyone who is interested in tai chi to be able to feel its benefits”. Pippa spends part of her week leading classes which range from a multiple sclerosis session, through balance and mobility needs to beginners and intermediate groups.

Patrick Dollard is an educationalist who believes that the words education and fun should be able to share the same sentence. He has taught in Primary, Secondary and Special schools as well as Prison and Outdoor Education. After a spell as a headteacher he worked for a medical school in the West country teaching doctors and consultants how to teach as well as supervising students on teaching practice on school placements acting as a mentor and coach. He now teaches: sailing, powerboating, navigation, first aid, anaphylaxis awareness along with safeguarding and protecting children courses as a NSPCC trained tutor. He is happiest working outdoors and believes that learning should be experiential and internalised if it is to be of any use to us.

Dilys Morgan Scott. Having explored art school, yoga, ki aikido, drumming and circle dancing I discovered an appreciation of both the meditative and the dynamic qualities of Gabrielle Roth’s 5 Rhythms. I completed the first teacher training with Gabrielle, in 1989 and the second in 1994.  I have taught the 5Rhythms, travelling throughout Europe teaching weekends and longer, intensive, workshops, and have run weekly classes in Devon, for over fifteen years. Throughout all the twists and turns of my life, at the forefront has been music and rhythm, which is my first love, my constant ally, and my personal medicine. It moves me from inertia, touches my heart, and inspires me.  I am known for my sense of humour and lightness of touch. My work is profound and challenging, whilst being playful and gentle. It is always sacred but not always serious.

Calligraphy and lettering artist Celia Lister lives and works in Cornwall, England. With a graphic design background, Celia has worked with calligraphy for over 18 years, has studied with national and international tutors, is a graduate of The SSI Advanced Training Scheme and a Fellow of Calligraphy and Lettering Arts Society. Celia's personal creative journey is the expressive qualities of text, colour and illustration, from traditional calligraphy to contemporary calligraphic lettering. Her work has been widely exhibited. Celia is an enthusiastic, friendly, and supportive tutor, and as a Calligraphy and Lettering Arts Accredited Tutor, offers a high standard of tuition. She has specialised in teaching calligraphy,design and lettering art since 1994 both locally and nationally to a variety of levels.

Imogen Hallam started exhibiting her landscape and seascape paintings when only 16, whilst spending many years as a 'boat gipsy' in the Mediterranean. On returning to the UK in the mid-nineties she gained an art degree at Plymouth University. Imogen studied illustration and wrote a children's book and consequentally became interested in exploring ceramics and creating three dimensional work. She currently works as an artist and illustrator in two and three dimensions, naturalistically and in the abstract. "Art for me is about exploring self, expression of self and also about creating images inspired from the natural world.I love exploring different mediums and styles." Her teaching style is dynamic and caters to all levels.

Nadia Tracy is an artist and dreamer with a strong practical streak. Consequently in the course of her working and creative life she is a qualified designer, gardener, de-clutterer, nanny, counseller, carer and workshop facilitator. She's a great believer in the creative human spirit and all the processes that contribute to that freedom of expression.Whether it's providing a wide range of support in the home environment or offering guidance in the visual arts, she maintains a working balance with each strand informing the other.

Sorrel Scott has worked as a qualified Psychologist in various mainstream health settings then moved on, both to develop her own counselling and Depth psychology practice(Jungian) and move with her husband and children to live by the moor in Okehampton. Sorrel has a long held interest in how myth, dream and film affect everyday life. She works in collaboration with Nadia Tracy helping clients through the use of theraputic de-cluttering.

Judy Hall qualified as a practioner of the Alexander Technique at the North London Teacher training school(1985-8) under the directorship of Misha Magidov. She has since taught in London and Devon. She was a visiting teacher of AT for the Specialist musicians at Wells catherdral School for seven years (1996-2003) and is herself a succcessful musician. She continues with professional development coursese, and in 2000 gave a presentation at the 4th International Conference for Alexander Teachers in Music Colleges at The Royal College of Music.

Glenda’s background is in the fields of mainstream and complementary medicine. Having worked in Occupational Therapy, Acupuncture, Therapeutic Massage, Healing, Yoga and Qigong, it was very natural that her personal spiritual search would lead to the joyous discovery of a heart-centred form of healing which embodies the spirit in all its forms. After discovering them in 1994, she has been teaching the Dances of Universal Peace both in the UK and abroad for over 10 years. She organises and facilitates dance days and retreats with her husband Trevor (see Tutor Profile below) and responds to invitations to take the Dances to new groups and venues. She is also increasingly involved in the support and training of others.

Trevor enjoyed a long teaching career before leaving to develop his skills as a healer, gardener, smallholder and conservationist, through which he was better able to explore his interest in those spiritual traditions which honour and celebrate the natural world. Practice and study culminated in his becoming a Shamanic Practitioner. Since the turn of the century, he has accompanied Glenda (see Tutor Profile above) as a musician and more recently as a certified teacher of the Dances of Universal Peace. He and Glenda share the planning and presentation of their programmes and have evolved a unique style of joint leadership. When not travelling, they live as peacefully as possible at their home in Devon.

Sonia Duggan trained as a parenting group facilitator in 1994 and recently her interest in personal development led her to train as a life coach. She has also been a creative writer for many years, with work spanning poetry, short stories, children’s rhyming picture book stories and romantic novels. She now combines her coaching skills with her two passions of creative writing and parenting to offer unique workshops in each discipline. Her creative writing / coaching workshops are designed to help writers overcome their ‘saboteurs’ and achieve their dreams as writers, and her parenting workshops enable parents to raise their children’s self-esteem and create better relationships and communication within the family. Creativity, inspiration and fun are key ingredients of Sonia’s courses.

Linda White has been an artist since 1989 when, after a career in journalism, she decided to follow her childhood dream and become an artist. She has run workshops and taught art to beginners and practicing artists. When studying for her Fine Art Degree at Plymouth University, she learnt Cecil Collin’s method of teaching and was fascinated by the process and some of the outstanding and unusual results. She is currently painting and, through her work, is exploring the very different aspects of the right brain (intuitive) and left brain (logical).

Felicity Scott. I have been passionate about drumming for as long as I can remember; the sight, sound, excitement and sensation of the drums moving through the heart of a small child mesmerised by a brass band marching by in the street and the longing to be a part of making a sound that did that…, however, when at 14, I was required to play a piece of music for the whole of the rest of my class, I succeeded in humiliating myself, and confirmed to myself that there was no way I would ever be a part of making that sound… I couldn’t do it. So when I stop to think, it is still sometimes a surprise to find myself as an ‘Arthur Hull’ trained drum circle facilitator since 2002 having travelled across the country , and even internationally (including Barcelona and Italy, just to show off), facilitating both children (in schools) and adults  (in both workshops, and corporations) to play together. Recently, I have even had the honour of being invited to play with Kuljit Bhamra MBE (composer, producer, tabla player and pioneer of the bhangra movement in this country) at the phoenix in Exeter, and at Stonehenge as part of the Salisbury festival. This just goes to show, it has nothing to do with what you think you know.

Amerie Rose has been facilitating creative music and movement sessions for children and adults for over nine years. Her unique style comes from a place of heart, and her ability to connect to each person as an individual, bringing the group together in an harmonious whole. By using voice work, traditional percussion, creative arts and free movement, Amerie enables her participants to look deeper into themselves and to explore the way they resonate with the world around them. Over the past fifteen years, Amerie’s continuing training has been drawn from a myriad of sources for example a formal Drama BA, an apprenticeship with a Native American Elder, being a player of the Chinese Martial Art form Tai Chi, and a Living Movement practitioner, and exploring the art of life modelling. She claims, though, that becoming Mother to her six year old daughter has been her best training to date.

 Pam Kemp has had a very varied career. From school she started work in a laboratory, firstly for a company involved in the manufacture of medicinal drugs, progressing to the Ministry of Defence. Once married to a commercial diver, her life took a dramatic turn which saw her living in Saudi Arabia and learning to SCUBA dive. It was during her time here and later living in Cyprus, Spain and the Seychelles that her interest in photography began, firstly through her diving and underwater photography. For the past 18 years she has worked in eco-tourism, primarily on a variety of expedition cruise ships. Working at first as a marine tour specialist, driving inflatable boats and teaching passengers to snorkel and introducing them to the marine environment. Her job evolved to include lecturing on the flora and fauna of the various destinations as well as introducing people to some finer points of photography. This has given her a wider perspective on cultural matters and she takes a particular interest in local religions. She feels very privileged to have explored many countries bordering the great oceans of the world as well as undertaking many overland travels. These experiences are reflected in her photography. Pam has won several international photography competitions, including a section in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year and her work regularly appears in books and magazines.

Jason Davis Biography: I discovered my love for rhythm as a child dancing to my father’s conga playing, after inheriting his drums and finding the memory of his rhythms flow through me I began my journey into percussion.  I have enjoyed the passion and excitement of African drumming and more recently came to Taiko (Japanese) drumming.  I have practised Tai-chi for many years and Taiko brought together my love for movement, the eastern approach/philosophy and drumming. I have 15 years experience of teaching and performing drumming and have taken drums into every community situation imaginable; sharing the instant access to music and joyful collective group experience.