for the bard in you

Find & Follow Your Soul Path, Express Your Sacred Creativity...

Way of Awen helps people tap into their creative potential, for the positive empowerment of the individual, the community & the planet.



Way of Awen has helped many individuals and communities since 2004... However, as William Butler Yeats said, 'Education is not filling a bucket, but lighting a fire.' Each achievement is to the credit of the achiever - all Way of Awen has done is to provide the 'flint and tinder' and point the way... We salute our former participants and communities we have had the pleasure to work with.

People

Wayland, a partially-sighted storyteller from Northumbria, went from reading out his stories from a text held close to his face, to being able to perform a story or poem either from memory or extempore after attending several Way of Awen weekends throughout 2004 onwards. He performs regularly at the Catweazle Club, Oxford, and has gone on to appear professionally in the Oxford Folk Festival.

Helen Moore attended the first Way of Awen weekend in Spring 2004 - the year she held the Bardic Chair of Caer Badon, becoming the 8th Bard of Bath. Since then she has established herself as a highly regarded eco-poet, Forest School educator, and published author.

John Wadsworth attended the Taliesin Intensive in Wales in 2007. He has gone on to establish The Alchemical Journey.

Alana Farrel attended the ten week storytelling course at the University of Bath, run by Kevan, and went on to found the Bristol Story Cafe.

Tye Coxston attended bardic workshops run by Kevan at the Wessex Gathering - and is having her first book published by Capall Bann.

Danu Forest was a student of Kevan's and has since had books published by Wooden Books and others; and has become a popular workshop leader.

Communities

Bardic events I have been involved in establishing/running/hosting/judging/supporting...


  • Bardic Chair of Caer Badon (Bath)
  • Lammas Games (The Druid Network)
  • Bardic Chair of Ynys Witrin (Glastonbury)
  • Bardic Chair of Caer Wyse (Exeter)
  • Bardic Picnic (Northampton)
  • Bardic Cabaret (Wessex Gathering, Dorset)
  • Flag Fen Eisteddfod (Peterborough)
  • Bard of the Avalon Marshes, Samhain Fair (Peat Moors Visitor Centre, Somerset Levels)
  • Left Coast Eisteddfod (Portland, Oregon)

Groups/Events
  • Alternatives, St James, Piccadilly, London
  • Atlantis Bookshop, London
  • Treadwells Bookshop, London
  • Positive Living Groups - Bath, Bournemouth
  • Earth Spirit Fayre - Bath, Glastonbury
  • Mind, Body, Spirit Fayre, London Olympia
  • Moot with No Name, London
  • Moot Under the Stars, Glastonbury
  • Big Green Gathering
  • Gaunts House Summer Gathering
  • Resurgence Readers' Summer Camp
  • Bath Storytelling Circle
  • Garden of Awen, Bath
  • Raising the Awen, Northampton

See Connections for links

Way of Awen was established in 2004 by Kevan Manwaring (3rd Bard of Bath, international storyteller, creativity coach & author of The Bardic Handbook, The Book of the Bardic Chair & The Way of Awen) to facilitate the awakening of creative potential in individuals and communities, via playshops, courses, retreats, gatherings, working groups, bardic showcases and Bardic Chairs. It is open to any wishing to awaken their creative potential, in any art form and in daily life. 

Way of Awen enables you to:

  • untap the potential of your sacred creativity
  • connect with kindred spirits
  • share your awen - poetry, stories, music, art, dance, etc
  • join or set up a local group to explore the Way of Awen
  • visit inspiring sites & events together
  • celebrate your community's local distinctiveness
  • belong to an international network of bards, artists, & visionaries
  • share wisdom, research, & resources
Way of Awen can offer:

Interested? Why not become a Friend of Awen? Full membership benefits include priority booking for events, discount on Awen titles, newsletter & more. 

If you would rather keep it informal for now, simply get in touch, say hi, a little bit about yourself and what you're interested in, and I'll put you on the Way of Awen mailing list - letting you know about up-and-coming events. You will always have the option of joining later if it feels right for you.

Our ethos is Awen for All. No hierarchy. No elitism. We're all on the journey. See you along the Way - let's play!

'As you set out for Ithaka, hope you're road is a long one...' CP Cavafy 

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. 

Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken

'He whose face gives no light shall never become a star', William Blake 
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